


I assure you we're open!

by MrsMegadrive



Category: Last Podcast on The Left (Podcast) RPF
Genre: Alternate Universe - Convenience Store, Brat Submissive, But only a little, Gentle Dom, I think this will just be cute fluff?, M/M, Well that escalated quickly, and to think I had planned this to just be fluff, brat marcus, but who knows, cute dominant ben, henry sure does eat a lot of jerky, influenced by clerks, last podcast network, my brain isn't wired that way, oh past me, previous tags are now rendered redundant because i'm a slut for smut, so naive, soft dom, subtle daddy vibes, they probs gonna bang, yeah they almost definitely gon bang
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-09-08
Updated: 2020-05-27
Packaged: 2020-10-12 11:48:27
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 16
Words: 21,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20563808
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrsMegadrive/pseuds/MrsMegadrive
Summary: Marcus is an exhausted convenience store clerk who gets some strange, strange customers during the graveyard shift.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Inspired by [THIS TUMBLR POST](https://prokopetz.tumblr.com/post/187413653907/out-coffee-shop-aus-in-24-hour-convenience-store) about a 24 hour convenience store.

It had been more than an hour since he’d seen anyone enter the store.

Feet up on the counter and leaning dangerously back on his chair, Marcus scrolled through news sites on his phone. He guesses he’s just hoping that something is happening else where because at 2am he’s sure as shit that nothing is happening around here. Holden always shafted him and gave him the night shifts. Same old shit really- sit here, fuck around on his phone, maybe read…drink potentially dangerous amounts of energy drinks and coffee. Serve the same customers night after night. Truckers, cops, shift workers… the drunk couple that always come in around 1am on Sunday mornings to buy hot dogs, red bulls and two packs of cigarettes. She’s always yelling at him for some reason or another, Marcus hasn’t really bothered to listen. He enjoys seeing the small dog that is always peeping out from her handbag though, and will often give it a sneaky wave when the woman isn’t looking.

Then there’s the woman who comes in wearing pjs at 6am, looking like she hasn’t slept at all. Maybe she hasn’t, he often thinks. Her hair is always a bird nest of tangled frizz, buttons on her flannelette top buttoned up wrong most mornings. She buys a gallon of milk, a bag of flaming hot cheetos, a pack of cigarettes and $10 worth of scratch tickets.

His favourite though is the loud drunk guy who comes in every few nights wearing what seems to be a different loud Hawaiian shirt each time, who buys nothing but beer and one of each kind of jerky they sell. On the rare occasion that this caricature of a person stumbles in just that little bit more drunk than usual, he’ll take all of the hot n’ spicy jerky Marcus has on the shelves, will amble over to the refrigerated cabinets and will proceed to remove every single bottle of milk. It took Marcus watching this guy a few times to realise that he was searching for the longest shelf life on the milk. He’d assumed that this guy would probably drink it all while eating the jerky? He got a random flash of the man with his lips tinted orange from chilli powder, droplets of milk clinging to his beard and moustache as he sits in a dark room on the floor, playing that Bigfoot game that seems to be popular at the moment, probably shrieking and yelling in annoyance.

Tonight Marcus is in luck as his favourite person to temporarily amuse him wanders in. Loud shirt guy slowly ambles up to the counter, getting distracted by the magazine rack on his way, tipping an entire baskets worth of jerky, a six pack of beer and a jug of milk onto the counter abruptly. He stares at Marcus intently, while he scans his purchases. “Bag?” Marcus asks, fully knowing that this guy will say no and comically stack everything in his arms like an uncoordinated juggler.

“Pft. Nah. Save the fuckin’ trees, amirite?”

“Sure man” Marcus nods, smiling to himself.

“You come in here a lot, what’s your name? I’ve really got to stop referring to you in my head as jerky guy.” he asks, continuing to scan what seems like an endless amount of hot jerky.

“What’s it to you you fuckin’ Gobermouch?” Marcus stifles a giggle. “Who are you working for? This place a God damn front for a government agency?! I fuckin’ bet it is. You sell the premium good shit jerky but I don’t fuckin’ trust you. Not one bit. You look like you haven’t slept since Clinton was president.”

“Was just wonderin’, is all.” Marcus shrugs. “Your total is $66.66”

The man in front of him mimes playing air guitar, scrunching his eyes shut and mimicking a heavy metal riff. “Nerrrr neh nerrrr neh nerrr neh nerrrrr! Metal! That’s a whole lot of jerky. I’m a hungry boy.” He rubs his belly comically. “It’s Henry, don’t you dare reveal that to anyone else!”

At this stage Marcus is biting his cheek, trying not to laugh at this man, Henry. “Your secret is safe with me.” Henry peers over the counter to read the name tag that is wonkily pinned to Marcus’ shirt.

“Marcus.” He ponders for a moment. “Hail yourself Marcus.” He throws up a devil horns symbol, grabs his jerky, stashing as much of it in his pockets as possible, balances the beer and the milk in his arms and precariously carries his purchases away.

“Hail yourself Henry…” Marcus says quietly after him, sitting down and picking up his book again.


	2. Chapter 2

Sitting outside in the cold, Marcus watches his breath form clouds of fog and smiles quietly to himself. The harsh light of the store gives him headaches some nights, and if he’s being completely honest with himself, he’s overworked and overtired right now. The night air bites at his cheeks, keeping him awake as he sits against the wall near the door, smoking. He’s not technically meant to leave the store unattended but it’s 3am and he hasn’t had a single customer in almost an hour and a half now. Flicking through twitter on his phone he looks up when he hears a familiar voice approaching.

“You know, I know plenty about wrestling. You’re not cool for liking wrestling you know. It just makes you a giant, fuckin’… hairy 10 year old.” Henry grumbles.

“Oh yeah?”

Marcus can see that Henry isn’t alone for once. There is a tall man walking beside him, gently swinging a Bud Lite bottle at his side. Henry looks like he is struggling to keep up with his friend in his intoxicated state.

“Yeah!”

“Who is your favourite wrestler then, dumbass?” The friend asks, smirking. Marcus watches on and can almost see the gears turning in Henry’s mind as he walks along, scrambling for an answer.

“Don’t you fucking say it Henry.” His friend cautions.

“Bobby Bonilla.”

“Correct me if i’m wrong, but that man is NOT a wrestler” Marcus chimes in as the men approach.

“Sure he is! Right Ben?”

“NO! This…” Ben thrusts his beer towards Marcus. “This man is correct and you KNOW it Zebrowski.” Marcus notices the way that Ben smiles down at him and can feel the heat of a blush cross his cheeks. Thankfully the lighting outside of the store is sketchy at best.

“What would uhhhh…” Henry stands there for a moment, mouth agape as he thinks. “What would MARCUS know? He looks like he has a fucking catalogued collection of animal bones in display cases that he masturbates over religiously. This is not a man that knows sport.”

“He might know a thing or two about wraslin’?” Ben smiles and Marcus swears he caught a brief but definite wink there.

“Nope. Not the sportin’ kind at least” Marcus lilts in his subtle Texan accent. He grins up at the men and puts out his cigarette. “Your jerky awaits.” He holds the door open for Henry, and follows him through as Ben reaches above his head and holds the door open for him.

Marcus slinks back behind the counter, picking up a red vine and chewing on it absentmindedly as he returns to his twitter feed. He can hear the two men laughing and bickering as they walk the narrow isles of the store. Despite his predictable shopping behaviours, Henry makes his way through each isle slowly when he visits the store. One day, Marcus thinks, Henry will surprise him and pick up something different. He sees him pick up a fist full of jerky, visibly upset that two spots on the shelf are empty. Tonight is not the night apparently. The taller of the two men has a six pack of beer under each arm at this stage, and a tube of Pringles wedged under his chin. He slings the beers on to the counter, plopping the Pringles down on the counter, releasing them from their nesting place under his beard. “Healthy dinner tonight Mark. It was Mark right?”

“Marcus.” He hates abbreviations.

Ben mimes slapping his forehead and grins. “My bad, Marcus.”

“I don’t know why you insist on eating those you fuckin’ Muppet. Your giant meat mits don’t fit in the tube. Or when they do you get stuck and end up lookin’ like Mega Man.” Henry proceeds to mime shooting lasers from his fists dramatically. “Pew pew, assholes!”

“I should nerd alert you for that, you gad damn egg head.” Ben laughs, leaning into his Wisconsin accent for effect. Marcus smiles and can’t help but find this giant, albeit currently buzzed man kinda adorable. “Anyway I’ve never had any complaints about the size of my mits from anyone that counts.” He smiles at Marcus gently again and quirks an eyebrow.

“Hey Ben. Ben. Buddy. When you’re hunched over, jerkin’ off over old 90’s wrestling magazines do you feel like a giant?”

“Please Henry, why would I feel like a giant?”

“Normal sized dick, giant hands! You gotta look down and feel like you either gotta tiny dick, or like you’re a giant, jerkin’ off a normal, non Sasquatch sized person.”

Marcus can’t help but wheeze out a laugh, trying to hide his amusement by busying himself with putting Ben’s transaction through.

Ben’s stance has changed and he now has his chest puffed out dramatically and has an almost sour, indignant look on his face. “Goodness Henry! Marcus here doesn’t need to be thinking about me romancing myself!” His face softens as he looks up at Marcus. “I’ll have you know everything is perfectly proportional compared to these.” He puts on a fantastic display of jazz hands and grins.

“Customer’s always right, or so I hear.” Marcus says through a small smile.

Henry circles back to the counter, beer and jerky in hand. “I’m a fuckin’ customer too spooky dook! You’re outta jerky by the way, you should fix that!”

“It’s on order, we can’t seem to keep up with this strange guy who keeps coming in and buying like $50 worth of jerky every few nights…” Marcus sneaks a glance at Ben as he teases Henry, taking note of the way Ben’s eyes crinkle and his cheeks squish when he smiles.

“Service here is terrible.” Henry gripes as he pays for his jerky and beer.

“I’m finding it quite satisfactory.” Ben shrugs at Henry.

“You’re just thinking with your dick again Kissel. He’s exactly your type!”

“Oh leave it alone, I do not have a type.” Ben huffs, turning away so that Marcus can’t see the blush creeping up his cheeks.

“Underweight, gangly, spooky guys who have eyes that scream that they’re dead inside…you’ve got a type FOR SURE.”

Marcus smirks, picking up his phone and sitting down behind the counter again. As attractive as he’s finding Henry’s friend, a convenience store at 3am in a rough neighbourhood is not the right place to be asking for phone numbers. Especially if you’re working there and your customer is well on his way to being drunk.

“You have a good night- Morning- whatever Marcus.” Ben chimes, as he walks out the door.

  
“Live love laugh Marcus.” Henry yells on his way out.

“Hail yourself Henry.”


	3. Chapter 3

It’s been a few days since he was last blessed with a predictably whimsical Henry visit. Marcus wakes up late and groans as he looks over at the giant pile of dirty laundry that has built up beside his bed. He should probably fix that. He’s not starting work for a long while yet so he figures he can take his dog Georgie for a walk to the laundromat and grab a coffee while he waits. The walk is only a few blocks, so Marcus walks slowly, laundry bag slung over his shoulder, soaking up the sun, smiling. He feels like he lives 90% of his life under flickering white fluorescent lights. His complexion probably reflects that, he thinks. He likes his job, it allows him to be alone most of the time, and he usually manages to chew through a couple of books a week. As a result though he’s incredibly pale and his light blue eyes are surrounded by dark, sunken circles lately. He knows he needs to take a little time off from work to catch up on…well… he’s not even sure. He just knows that he wants to sleep for a million years. He smiles as Georgie trots along side him, happy to be out of the apartment for a while.

Sipping cautiously at his coffee, Marcus sits against the wall of the laundromat, Georgie plopped down in his lap content to watch the passing cars. Looking at his watch, Marcus notes that he still has a few hours before he has to get ready for work. If he’s being honest with himself, his mind has wandered a few times to the tall redhead that came in with Henry the other night. It’s been a long while since he’s been with anyone, his schedule making it kinda tricky to have anything more than a quick tinder or grinder hookup. He’s probably a bit touch starved, that’s all. He tries to push the thought of the squishy cheeked giant from his mind as he ties Georgie up, heading inside to collect his washing.

*****************  
*****************

“You WANT to believe?” Henry asks accusingly, eyeing off Marcus’ X-Files shirt.

“Huh?” Marcus looks up to see Henry looking at him, waiting for an answer. He’s been concentrating on scanning the 20 plus packets of jerky taking up his entire counter and not really listening if he’s being honest. He can never tell just how drunk Henry is too, which means he often zones out a little.

“Your shirt, Spooky Dook. You WANT to believe?”

“Ohhhh, I guess. Yeah.”

“You either believe or you don’t son.”

“I believe…”  
  
“DO YOU THOUGH?”

Marcus grins a lopsided smile and nods.

“Yeah. Yeah I do.”

Henry leans in, a serious look on his face.

“You ever heard of Mufon, kid?”

“Uuhhh… Mutual UFO Network?”

Henry’s eyes light up like a 90’s kid opening a Nintendo 64 on Christmas day.

“SPOOKY DOOK! MY BOY!”

“I dabble in Aliens & Ufology but it’s not my uhhh…. thing? I guess you’d say.”

“What is your thing Marcus? What get’s you fuckin’ rock hard in those tight little jeans of yours? What gets your gears spinning? What get’s your Bacon greased?”

“True Crime.” Marcus shrugs.

“Myurrder?” Henry quirks an eyebrow and drums his fingers together like a super villain.

“Myurrrrrrder indeed!” Marcus laughs. “I read a LOT of books between customers.” He holds up a copy of Hell’s Princess, random pages flagged with post it notes and folded corners.

“Schechter! You’ve got some brains rattling around that greasy little head of yours! Ok, I kinda see the appeal now…”

Marcus continues scanning packet after packet of jerky.

“I said ‘I kinda see the appeal now’” Henry says, intentionally slower this time.

“Appeal?” Marcus looks up to see Henry looking at him impatiently.

“My Bumblebutt friend Ben totally wants to do the vertical monster mash with you Spooky Dook.”

He’s certain that he’s blushing right now. “Oh?” He’s trying to act indifferent because it would be mortifying for anyone to find out just how desperately Marcus missed being touched. He hadn’t realised how much he’d isolated himself with his work until recently.

“Yeah! He keeps referring to you as my ‘cute kooky clerk buddy’. I say ‘keeps’ because every time I talk to him he asks if i’ve bought any fucking jerky.”

“Cute huh? I’ve never been called that before.”

“Yeah well I wouldn’t know too much about that either, but us nerds gotta find other ways of charming our way into people’s pants huh?!”

“Presumptuous calling me a nerd…”

“Spooky Dook, you were wearing a shirt with Ed Fuckin’ Gein on it the other night. You’re some kinda nerd.”

“Fair. I’ll pay that. Well if you happen to talk to your friend could you tell him i’m working the next three nights if he were to need more Pringles…” Marcus trails off, blushing deeply.

“So you like big lumbering idiots who constantly make references to outdated, terrible Dan Aykroyd movies and drink Bud Lite Limes? The worst of all beers? I’ll pass that on for you Spooky Dook.”

“Your total is $43 for tonight.”

“That’s a lot of jerky. You’ve gotta have a sturdy, cast iron Polish stomach to handle this much cured meat Marcus. It’s not a diet that most men can live on.” He looks almost proud.

“My body is 90% sugar at this point so i’m not one to judge” He gestures to the half eaten pack of Oreos open next to his phone on the counter.

“That’s a very unhealthy habit you got there Spook. You’re gonna rot your teeth! Anyways, i’m off. Live, love, laugh Marcus.”

“You’ll have to explain that to me one day.”

“Sure, sure…” Henry waves dismissively.

“Uuuuhhh ok, Hail yourself Henry.”

“Hail Satan!” Henry yells as he walks into the night, leaving Marcus slightly confused as always.


	4. Chapter 4

“Someone rang for you earlier, asked what time your shift starts.” Marcus rolls his eyes, he’s in no mood for Holden today and just wants to get the shift hand over done already.

“Oh?”

“Said you went to high school together? Said something about being on the wrestling team together? Which sounded suspect to me because well….” Holden vaguely gestures at Marcus’ tall, lanky frame.

“Thanks, I know exactly who that is.” He busies himself with counting and balancing the til before Holden leaves, trying to suppress the smile creeping across his face. He’s met this man once. And he was tipsy. Charmingly tipsy, but tipsy none the less. He settles in for the night at the counter, eating Oreo cereal straight from the box as he reads.

The night starts off busy and passes quickly. Before he knows it, it’s midnight and the store has settled into a comfortable silence. He hums quietly along to the music he’s got playing through a speaker on his counter, nibbling at his cereal when he hears the door chime. Looking up he sees Henry in a hideously loud shirt that is buttoned up crooked and looks like it’s just been picked up off the floor.

“Marcus! Buddy! Ya boy has a lady waiting outside!” He grins, carding his fingers through his hair messily before putting his cap back on.

“Oh? What kind of jerky would the lady like?” Marcus asks, deadpan.

“The latex, ribbed kind you fuckin’ ass. I know you got ‘em behind the counter. Don’t make me have to ask for them.”

“Size?”

“You really are a cretin, you know that? Regular! Fuck!”

“Just doin’ my job, is all.” Marcus smirks.

“Yeah, well you’d best get yourself a pack down while you’re there, I think Kissel is planning on visiting at some stage and those sexy, sleep deprivation circles around your eyes will have him wanting to eat you like a snack.”

“You better pay and get outta here before your lady gets another match on Tinder. Your shirt is done up wrong by the way.”

“Buddy, you’re lucky i’m wearin’ a shirt.” He grins sheepishly, paying and stuffing the box of condoms in his pocket awkwardly.

“Hail yourself Spooky Dook.”  
  
“Hail yourself Henry.”

“I won’t be the only one hailing Henry Zebrowski tonight!” He waggles his eyebrows cartoonishly as he turns to leave.

The next hour or so passes slowly, Marcus starting to get a head ache from reading and the horrid artificial lighting. He knows he’s not meant to do this, and does it more often than he’d care to admit, but he heads outside and sits against the wall near the door. His box of cereal has migrated outside with him as well as an obscenely large energy drink. He just can’t seem to catch up on sleep at the moment and he’s fuelled purely by sugar at this stage.

He scrolls through his twitter feed, softly listening to music in the background. He smiles to himself as he hears footsteps approaching and feels someone sit next to him. “I really can’t help but think that this would be a very easy convenience store to rob.”

Marcus smiles at his phone again. “Oh? Is that so?”

“I mean, yeah! As switched on as the clerk seems to be, he’s very easily distracted.”

“I see…” Marcus continues to scroll through twitter, although he’s not reading a single word at this stage. Ben rests his hand on Marcus’ thigh like it’s the most natural thing in the world. Marcus can’t play coy any longer and looks up, eyebrow quirked in amusement.

“For sure! I hear he’s very cute but a bit slow on the uptake.”

“That’s not what i’ve heard.”

“Oh definitely. I also hear he gives his phone number out to tall handsome customers who come out of their way after work to visit and bring coffee…” Ben sets a coffee down at Marcus’ feet, followed by a pack of Red Vines. “You gotta stop drinking those energy drinks kid, they’ll rot your insides.”

“Did you go to another convenience store to get coffee on your way to visit me, working at a convenience store… that sells coffee?” Marcus huffs a quiet laugh.

“You’re ruining my smooth moves here Marcus!” Ben replies, pretending to be offended.

“Our coffee is shit anyway.” Marcus says, smiling as he takes a much needed sip.

“You just missed Henry.”

“Apparently he had a date tonight?” Ben shakes his head, laughing.

“Oh yeah, judging by the condoms he bought, i’d say it’s going well” Marcus laughs.

“That’s my boy! They grow up so fast, don’t they?” Ben smiles down at Marcus, noticing the absolute satisfaction on his face after each sip of coffee.

“He implied that i’d best stock up myself…” Marcus snort laughs to himself, not noticing the blush on Ben’s face.

“I uhhh…” Ben swallows almost nervously. “So are you seeing anyone?”

“I mean, i’m looking at you right now. That’s the extent of my seeing anyone recently.”

Ben giggles softly. “Oh really?”

“Shift work doesn’t allow for much of a social life, is all.”

“I keep weird hours too, it sucks ass.”

“Not much ass sucking to be had around here, unfortunately for me!” Marcus cackles.

“Wa-hey!” Ben laughs, scooting a little closer so that they’re shoulder to shoulder.

Their giggling dies down slowly as they lean into each other. “You know, not to sound too forward, but I kinda did bring you coffee and candy in the hopes that I could get your number. There’s something about you that I can’t stop thinking about, which feels ridiculous, but…” Ben shrugs.

“Pass me your phone.”

“Ok, bossy britches.” Ben laughs, handing him his phone.

Marcus taps away for a moment and hands it back. Ben smiles as he notices that Marcus has saved his number as “Spooky Dook.” He calls the number immediately so that Marcus now has his phone number, and is delighted to hear that his ringtone is the theme song to Unsolved Mysteries. “God damn, you just got even more attractive.”

Marcus turns his phone to show Ben that he’s saved his number as “Henry’s hot friend Ben.”

“We need to work on these nicknames sweetheart, because not only is ‘hot’ a painful understatement, but I don’t want to hear Henry’s voice every time I see your name pop up on my screen.”

“Sweetheart?”

“Well I don’t know, your DNA must be like 60% sugar by now, so it’s not a huge stretch.” He nudges Marcus playfully.

“Darlin’ it’s more like 90% at this stage.” Marcus lilts, his accent strong in his tired state. Without thinking he rests his head on Ben’s shoulder. Ben traces small circles on Marcus’ knee with his thumb absentmindedly.

“I’d wager a great deal of money that you taste as sweet too” Ben murmurs.

“You’re quite to the point, aren’t you Benjamin?”

Ben chuckles gently. “No one calls me that anymore. I’m just getting too old for playing it safe and being coy. You seem like a big boy that can handle being hit on by devilishly good looking, not at all freakishly tall men who again… bring you coffee at 2am.”

“Were you ever on a wrestling team?”

“Seems like an odd detail to be hung up on” Ben laughs. “Yeah, I was pretty good in high school! I didn’t know what else to say to your boss…”

“You reckon you can pin me into submission?” Marcus lifts his head from Ben’ shoulder and grins up at him, waggling his eyebrows.

“I don’t think you submitting would take much coercion, but sure, we can pretend for a little while.” The way that Ben looks Marcus dead in the eyes as his says this makes him shiver a little. Touch starved Marcus wants to drag Ben into the cool room of the store and explore whatever this is going on between them. Logical, still on the clock Marcus merely blushes, taking another sip of his coffee.

“Too far?” Ben asks, looking a little worried.

“No! God no. I’m just in a fucking haze of sleep deprivation right now. I have a bunch of days off coming up soon, maybe we could uhhh…do something?”

“I’d love to uhhh…DO something.” Ben grins like an idiot.

“You should get back inside Kid, it’s cold out here. What time do you get off?”

Marcus checks the time on his phone. “Couple of hours.”

“You ok to get home?”

“Ben, are you trying to parent me right now?”

“Sweetheart, i’ve got a vested interest in you getting home in one piece.” He winks at Marcus, which goes straight to his groin. “Let’s get you inside.”

Marcus makes his way back to the counter, blinking sheepishly at the lights.

“I want a text when you get home so I know you’re safe.”

“Yes Sir…” Marcus winks and then laughs, taking his phone from his pocket.

“Ooooh that’s kinda fun. I like it, I like it….” Ben laughs.

Marcus: Go home and get some sleep, you beautiful giant.

Ben looks at his phone and grins. “Compliments will get you everywhere.”

“Goodnight Ben.”

“Night Marcus. Let me know when you’re free.”

“Never free Ben, but for you, very cheap.”

“Check Please!” Ben laughs as he walks out.


	5. Chapter 5

Marcus: I’ve got 3 days off starting tomorrow, wanna catch up?

Ben: Hey!

Ben: I’d love to, what are we doing?

Marcus: I thought we could see a movie? That’s a thing people still do right?

Ben: I think the young people Netflix & Chill now.

Marcus: I mean we could do that if you want?

Ben: You want snack bar candy though right?

Ben: Tell me i’m wrong!

Marcus huffs out a laugh and shrugs to himself.

Marcus: Dang, you’re onto me.

Ben: Not yet, but I have high hopes.

Marcus: Are you hitting on me Benjamin?

Ben: You’re onto me!

Marcus: Ahhh not yet, but I have high hopes haha

\---

  
Marcus’ night drags at a snail pace as he waits for it to be over. He looks at his watch expectantly, noting that drunk little dog couple should be by soon enough. He walks the isles, pulling stock forward and refilling shelves as needed. The whole time he can’t stop thinking about Ben and how instantly at ease he feels with him. It’s a strange feeling but it’s kind of a relief. He hasn’t dated anyone for such a long while and he catches himself feeling a little nervous. He looks up at his reflection in the curved surveillance mirror near the store’s exit and rakes his fingers through his messy hair. He looks damn exhausted and desperately needs these next few days of rest.

The night continues on at what feels like a drearily slow pace as Marcus thumbs through his copy of Carrie for what is probably the hundredth time. The door chimes, earning a brief peak up from Marcus.

“Spooky Dook! Or should I start calling you Spooky Marcus? Ya’know… like Spooky Mulder?” Henry walks up to the counter and leans against it casually. “You can be Spooky Fox Mulder and i’ll be your gorgeous red headed off sider, Dana Scully.”

Marcus puts his phone down, laughing. “Oh for sure, I’ll even wait for you when you disappear and get pregnant to a bunch of Greys."

“Hey now! They never confirmed that she had a grey gang bang! That whole plot line became a fucking shit show.” Henry throws his hands in the air dramatically. “Anyway. Can I get another pack of rubbers, my dude?”

“Four bucks little man, put that shit in my hands- if that money doesn’t show me then you’ll owe me owe me owe…” Marcus has an absolute shit eating grin on his face as he holds one hand out, a box of condoms in the other.

“You’re such a fuckin’ nerd. You’re lucky I get that reference because you’d just look like a flippin’ idiot otherwise. AND! You look like fuckin’ Jeffrey Dahmer in those glasses, just so you know!”

“I’ve never received a nicer compliment, thank you.”

“I didn’t mean- you know what? Fuck you, nerd” Henry slaps a $10 notes in Marcus’ hand and laughs quietly.

“Speaking of which, i’m seeing Ben tomorrow!”

“Oh shit! You two are gonna dick down!”

Marcus blushes deeply but shrugs comically.

“I gotta fuckin’ jet, got Natalie waiting in the uber for me out front.”

“Natalie?”

“Yeah you know, girl from last week?”

“Oh?”

“She’s a fuckin' force of nature, I think i’m in love already.”

“Well, Hail Natalie!”  
  
“Oh I will! I will happily worship at her altar all she wants. Hail yourself, Spooky Marcus.”

Marcus grins to himself as Henry leaves. He has always found him fascinating but now that they have this… what is it? Banter? Friendship? He looks forward to his visits. Marcus hears his phone vibrate on the counter.

Ben: Hey kid, i’m heading to bed. Just wanted to check that we’re still on for tomorrow?

Marcus: For sure. I’ll message you once i’m up.

Ben: Oh if we’re doing that I probably should have messaged you about 20 minutes ago but wasn’t sure you’d wanna talk me through a stoned, sleepy orgasm.

He sends Marcus a winking emoji, causing him to snort laugh loudly. Luckily he had the store to himself.

Marcus: If you keep that up you’ll have to talk me through an overtired, over caffeinated staff bathroom orgasm.

Marcus: I’ve been told this store would be easy to rob as it is, i’m sure the clerk jerkin’ off in the bathroom probably wouldn't help.

Ben: Well that’s certainly a visual. I’m uhhhh going to….bed.

Marcus: Bed?

Ben: Yes.

Ben: Definitely nothing else.

Ben: Nothing sordid or lewd…

Marcus: Have fun hailing yourself Ben.

He punctuates it with a winking emoji and an eggplant, laughing to himself.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If it were possible to gift a single chapter, this would be for [d0gmeat.](https://archiveofourown.org/users/d0gmeat/pseuds/d0gmeat)
> 
> Because i'm old, and a nerd... here's the Abbott and Costello sketch I was referencing. [Who's on first](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sShMA85pv8M)

Marcus is waiting for Ben inside the cinema foyer. He’s cutting it close for time, Marcus notes. He’s found a small collection of old arcade games in the foyer, tucked away near the bathrooms. He smiles broadly to himself as he happens across a pinball machine themed around The Who’s Tommy movie. He’s not great at pinball if he’s being honest, but he happily amuses himself while he waits, feeding coins into the machine and watching the lights and graphics blink, the music delightfully retro. A large set of hands slide their way onto his hips from behind and he feels Ben’s beard nuzzle into his neck. He feels completely wrapped up in the larger man and leans into it for a moment before speaking.

“How cool is this thing?”

“Who’s Tommy?”

“Yeah, it’s a bit naff and retro but kinda cool.”

“Ha! No! Who is Tommy?”

“Pinball wizard?”

“Nah I’m terrible!”  
  
“Ben are we having a who’s on first moment here?”

“I AM NOT LOU COSTELLO!”

Marcus wheezes out a laugh, causing Ben to step back while he continues his fit of giggles. Marcus wipes a tear from his eyes and sighs happily.

“You know you’re kinda cute when you smile and laugh like that, your whole face scrunches up”

“Can we go in so you can’t see me blushing anymore, please?”

The two men swing past the snack bar, Marcus walking into the cinema with an arm full of candy and an enormous soda. “You’re gonna rot your insides sweetheart” Ben laughs as he sits down at the back of the cinema with Marcus.

“You think i’ll taste sweet… well this is how it happens! I’m like a Kobe cow being raised for slaughter. They get massaged with Sake and fed beer! Think of how good they taste!”

“If you taste like red vines and whoppers, i’ll never bother you ever, ever again sugar lips.” It’s still light enough in the cinema that Marcus can see the wink Ben throws his way, and blushes deeply yet again.

“I like your shirt by the way…very cool.” Ben smiles at Marcus, watching him nibble at a red vine.

“I fucking LOVE horror movies. Have you seen Cannibal Holocaust?! Please tell me you have!?” Marcus shifts around in his seat so that he’s sitting legs crossed facing Ben, excitedly waiting for an answer.

“Goodness Gracious! Could you BE any more attractive right now? I LOVE that movie!”

“I could go on for days about horror movies Darlin’. Why’d you think I suggested we see IT?” Marcus smiles lopsidedly, shoving a fist full of Ben’s popcorn in his mouth.

“This is your tactic huh? Take me to a horror flick to get me all buttered up so you can have your way with me? Is that how it goes Marcus? Because if you expect me to cuddle up to you, and hold your hand during the scary parts…to kiss you like a horny sex starved teenager at the back of a movie theatre…to let you steal my popcorn even though I asked you if you wanted some when we were at the snack bar…”

Marcus cackles, earning them both a “shhhh!” from one of the few people sharing the cinema with them at this awkward afternoon screening time.

“Ahhh yes. You got me! My plan all along!”

“Yeah well give me your damn hand so I can hold it already.”

Marcus shifts in his seat, sitting down to watch the movie previews, sliding his hand into Ben’s and gingerly resting his head on his shoulder. Ben snuggles into it and rests his head gently on Marcus’, rubbing soft circles with his thumb on the smaller man’s hand. The two sit quietly for some time, watching the movie together, still snuggled up.

Ben leans down a little, still resting his head on Marcus’ and whispers almost inaudibly… “Can I kiss you?”

Marcus nods slightly, tightening his grip on Ben’s hand a little. He can feel his heart hammering in his chest as Ben reaches a finger beneath his chin, gently pulling his face from the comfort of his shoulder, to face him. Ben brushes the mess of hair covering Marcus’ face and eyes out of the way and gently slips his hand behind his head, fingers coming to rest in his hair. Even in the dark Ben can see the light reflecting in Marcus’ bright blue eyes, the colours of the screen flickering as they’re mirrored in his eyes. It’s Marcus that leans in first, catching Ben by surprise as he kisses him sweetly on the lips. Ben pulls back for a moment to take stock of the gorgeous man sitting beside him. He can’t help but bite at his lip as he looks Marcus up and down quickly before rushing back in for another kiss, this one not so chaste. He groans quietly as Marcus runs his tongue across his bottom lip, asking for entrance. He melts into Marcus, trying his best to remember that they are in a public place right now. Marcus is also keenly aware that they aren’t in private right now, a fact that doesn’t bother him one bit. “Let them turn around and see!” He thinks to himself, smiling into Ben’s lips.

“Do you think anyone would notice if I pulled you into my lap?” Ben laughs quietly, kissing at Marcus’ jaw.

“I mean, if they’re lucky? Is that something you’d like to do to me Darlin’?”

“You’ve got me riled up more than i’d like to admit kid…” Marcus smirks in the darkness. “I’ve got quite the situation goin’ on here.”

“And me sitting on your lap would do what exactly to help the situation?”

“Oh absolutely nothing! But it sounds kinda fun doesn’t it?”

Marcus lifts the arm rest between them and shuffles over so that he can throw a leg over Ben’s lap. It’s awkward and clumsy, making Marcus hunch over, trying his best to stifle giggles in the crook of Ben’s neck. “Come on, ya weirdo” Ben laughs as his hands find their place on Marcus’ hips. The smaller man is still giggling at the absolute ridiculousness of their current situation but that is cut short as Ben holds his hips steady and rolls his hips, grinding an impressive feeling hard on into Marcus’ jean clad ass. Ben can feel Marcus’ breath still as it hitches momentarily.

“Again.” Marcus whispers, kissing his way up Ben’s neck, making his way across his cheeks, peppering them with gentle kisses. His moan is swallowed by a kiss as Ben grinds against his ass again. The two kiss sloppily, impatiently almost. Marcus shivers as Ben runs his hands beneath his shirt, gently raking his nails along his back. Marcus pulls back, panting a little. “Is it too late to tell you that I have a serious voyeurism kink?” He laughs quietly, leaning back and grinding himself into Ben’s lap, relying on his tight grip on his hips to keep him from losing his balance.

“You know, I had my suspicions” Ben nods towards Marcus’ lap and his obvious erection. “I’m all for a bit of heavy petting at the back of a movie cinema but uhhh we should probably move this elsewhere if we’re going to uhhhh resolve this?”

“Would you hate me if I said I wanted to stay to the end?”

“Honey i’ve been waiting a long, long time for you to come into my life, i’m sure I can wait another…” Ben checks his watch. “Another hour and a half? How damn long is this movie?!”

Marcus wriggles back to his seat and squeezes Ben’s thigh reassuringly. “I’m worth it, I promise” He grins crookedly and picks up his red vines.


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Just a short one because i'm a bit pressed for time at the moment. 
> 
> We'll get to the good stuff next chapter, pinky promise!

Marcus walks out of the cinema with Ben’s popcorn in hand, snacking on it enthusiastically as Ben walks behind him, shrugging his denim jacket on again. “Wanna go play the arcade games?” Marcus asks, between huge mouthfuls of popcorn.

“Oh gosh! Do they have air hockey? I absolutely dominate at air hockey!”

Marcus stifles a giggle as he looks up at Ben. “I’m pretty sure I saw an air hockey table back there somewhere…” He leads Ben by the hand, finding the table in question. Ben gently walks Marcus backwards so he is leaning softly on the table, and leans in for lingering kiss. As he pulls away he sees Marcus with his eyes still closed for a moment, a dopey smile on his face as his eyes flutter open.

“Are you sure you want to do this Sweetheart? I’m going to absolutely destroy you.”

“That’s a phrase I hope to hear in a different context later on.” Marcus is sucking at a red vine as he teases Ben. The taller man wonders if Marcus has these stashed in each of his pockets, he seems to pull them from thin air constantly.

“I’m always gentle the first time.” Ben winks.

Marcus rolls his eyes playfully and slips out from Ben’s arms to take his place at one end of the table. He feeds the machine, smiling delightedly as it whirs to life- making loud siren noises. He watches as Ben runs his hands over the table’s surface, feeling the cool air pass over his palms. It’s such a dorky thing for a grown man to do but it’s strangely endearing, to see the goofy smile on the taller man’s face. Marcus retrieves the hockey puck from the tray near his knees and places it on the table, readying himself. “What are we playing for?”

Ben pauses to think for a moment. His knee jerk reaction is to flirt and say something in the hopes of seeing Marcus blush again, his favourite thing at the moment. He thinks better of it and offers an a shrug, hoping Marcus will pick.

“Loser has to pay for dinner.”

“Goodness Gracious! We’re having dinner now are we? Pretty presumptuous isn’t it?” Ben says indignantly. Marcus frowns and folds his arms in mock anger, pausing for a moment to see how Ben reacts then cracks a smile.

“I mean if you have other plans?”

“Just happy you’re enjoying our date, is all." Ben replies softly.

"If I win I want pizza at your place.”

“AGAIN! Presumptuous much?” Ben grins. Marcus blushes a little, he’s already far too fond of the way Ben’s cheeks round when he smiles, his eyes crinkling.

“If you don’t want me coming to your place, beat me” Marcus gives an over exaggerated shrug and sharply hits the puck in Ben’s direction. He hits back and Marcus will admit, he’s pretty good at this game. The two skirmish back and forth, Marcus preferring to go slowly, watching Ben for moments of weakness, while the red head just goes for an all out aggressive show of power and speed. The intensity in Ben’s eyes is a little distracting for Marcus and flusters him a little but the score is tied up right now and if he’s being honest, he wants to win just so he can be a brat about it.

Ben hits the puck a little too hard, causing it to bounce against Marcus’ end of the table and slam back into his own goal area. Marcus smiles broadly. “Thanks for that point Darlin’ but I don’t need help scoring, i’m skilled enough to do that all on my own.” He winks at Ben, and looks up at the timer. Ten seconds on the clock. They go back and forth until the timer runs out and an air horn blares loudly.

"Best of three!?"

"Just admit it big guy, you played yourself and to the victor go the spoils!"

“Well… pencil it in your diary kid, because you’ve got a date with my lap and sofa tonight I guess!” Marcus grabs his hand, squeezing softly and resting his head on Ben’s shoulder.

“Are we doing the young person thing? Are we Netflix and chilling?”

Ben huffs out a laugh.

“You know that’s just a euphemism for boinking these days?”

Marcus grins widely up at Ben and shrugs a little.

“Are we Netflix and chilling?”

“I’d sure like that Sweetheart” he replies, rubbing soft circles onto Marcus’ hand with his thumb.


	8. Chapter 8

The train ride to Ben’s apartment is short and peaceful, the two sitting side by side, knees touching as they hold hands and scroll through their phones quietly. Marcus yawns quietly and sinks his head to rest on Ben’s shoulder. He is still behind on sleep but is having such a good time that he’s trying to push through his usual haze. He’s going to need a coffee or energy drink soon, he thinks- otherwise he’s going to crash out and fast.

******

“You’re not scared of dogs are you?” Ben asks as he slides his key into the deadbolt in his front door.

“Nope! Love ‘em.”

“That’s great! You’re about to meet my bestie.” Ben grins an enormous smile, and Marcus can’t help but smile back. This soft side of Ben is something he enjoys seeing quick glimpses of. The door swings open and Marcus is instantly encircled by a small, blurry white ball of fur, racing about his feet.

“Puffin! Hey Puffin Bear! Calm down buddy!” Ben bends down to scoop up the small dog and holds him up, cradling him.

“Oh hey Ben, who’s your pretty friend?” Marcus giggles as Ben puts on a funny voice for Puffin and moves his paws as if he’s talking.

“Hi Puffin, i’m Marcus. You think i’m pretty huh?”

“Ben’s been talking about his spooky friend with the sparkly blue eyes and I gotta say Marcus, he’s been under selling you!” Ben is now hiding behind Puffin, his shoulders bouncing softly as he giggles at himself.

The shorter man steps over to ruffle Puffin’s fur and scratch behind his ears gently. “Well aren’t you sweet?” Ben gently places him down on the floor and tries in vein to brush off the white hair that’s now all over his black shirt.

“Pizza?”

“Oh God yes!” Marcus groans, plopping himself down on Ben’s couch and hooking his leg over the arm.

“Make yourself at home kid” Ben calls from the hallway.

“I’d have far less clothing on if I were making myself at home.”

“We’re not going to get to eat the pizza if you carry on down that path Sweetheart.” Ben replies, entering the lounge and grabbing the tv remote off of a nearby book shelf.

Marcus chuckles quietly. “Sorry, gotta think with my stomach instead for a little bit huh?” He smiles sheepishly. “What are we watching?”

“Well I thought that because you won, that you’d like to pick?”

Marcus grins and swipes the remote from Ben’s hands, sticking his tongue out teasingly. He flicks through Ben’s various streaming services and settles on a B-grade documentary about The Mothman. “Ahhh” Ben says pensively. “Mothman… the sexiest of all cryptids.”

“You think?”

“Oh yeah. Wrap me up in those wings Moth Daddy!” Ben laughs.

“I’ll take ‘Sentences I want to un hear’ for $200, Alex!”

“Oh ok! You don’t wanna fuck the Mothman, that’s fine. Who’s your choice?”

“Sasquatch.” Marcus answers matter of factly.

“Sasquatch?”

“You know what they say about cryptids with big feet?”

“Big shoes?”

“Big shoes, yes.” Marcus giggles.

The pizza finally arrives and Marcus grabs a plate full and sinks back down onto the couch, long legs awkwardly dangling off edge. Ben drops down next to him and pats his knees, signalling for Marcus to swing his legs up onto his lap. The two sit quietly as they eat, watching the documentary, the room only lit by the tv and a dim lamp in the corner of the room. It’s comfortable, dark and cozy and Marcus finds himself feeling heavy and tired. “Can I put my head in your lap?”

“Go for it. No funny business, i’m SO full of pizza right now” Ben laughs quietly, as Marcus scoots around and leans his head into Ben’s lap gently. Eventually Ben’s hand finds it’s way to Marcus’ head, where he finds himself unintentionally running his fingers through the fine brown hair. Marcus sighs happily and sinks his head further down, completely comfortable. Ben gently brushes the hair from Marcus’ face and strokes along his cheeks and down his neck. Marcus is aware that he’s getting a little too comfortable, but lets himself drift off against his better judgement.

Ben smiles softly as he notices the small snores escaping Marcus’ gently parted lips. He continues to play with his hair and caress his face as he watches the remainder of the documentary. Once the documentary is done Ben looks down and tries to figure out how to get up without waking Marcus up.

“Puffin!” Ben whispers loudly. “Help!”

The small dog looks up at Ben, head tilted to the side quizzically.

“You know what? You’re no help. Worst wing man ever.”

Ben slowly scoots himself out from under Marcus and slides a throw pillow under his head gently. The apartment is a comfortable temperature but Ben thinks Marcus might enjoy being snuggled up, so he covers him with a throw blanket, making sure his feet are all tucked in.

“Good night kid.” He bends down and plants a light kiss on Marcus’ forehead before picking Puffin up and heading to bed.

******

A few hours pass before Marcus wakes up, groggily wondering where he is for a moment. He looks across the room and takes note of his surroundings. Retro wrestling posters adorn the wall, and a collection of horror themed figurines have pride of place on a huge book shelf. It finally clicks when he notices the small collection of empty Bud Lite bottles on the table. “Ben!” He thinks, smiling sleepily.  
  
He takes note that Ben had tucked him in with a blanket and wraps it around himself as he gets up and wanders through the apartment, looking for Ben’s bedroom. He can hear a quiet snoring sound behind an ajar door and pushes it open gently. The redhead is sprawled across most of the bed, half covered in blanket. His hair is a ruffled mess. Marcus takes note of Ben’s American flag boxers and 3/4 sleeve shirt and smiles. He shrugs off the blanket and quietly undresses until he is wearing his boxers only and slides under the covers. He scoots next to Ben and rolls over to face him before pulling the blankets up, covering the larger man properly. He easily drifts back to sleep listening to the soft snores of both Ben and Puffin, who is curled up on the floor beside the bed.


	9. Chapter 9

Ben can feel Puffin licking at his hand,which is lazily hanging over the bed. As usual Puffin needs to go to the bathroom at what Ben feels is an obscene hour. He goes to sit up to take Puffin down stairs when he notices a topless Marcus tangled in the sheets next to him. He can’t help but notice the pale expanse of his chest, the morning light shining through his blinds leaving soft beams of light across the sleeping man’s face. Ben finds himself temporarily distracted, startled back to the task at hand when Puffin lets out a soft borf.

“Hey Puffin! Let’s go” He whispers to the tiny bear like ball of fluff.

Ben carefully climbs from the bed, throwing on a pair of sweat pants and kicking on his runners. He shuts the door to his apartment with a quiet click and takes Puffin down to do his business. There’s a coffee shop a 5 minute walk away from his apartment building so he picks Puffin up and wanders over, deciding to take Marcus some coffee and breakfast. As usual, Puffin garners lots of attention and compliments which Ben relishes, being the proud dog Dad that he is. He takes the short walk back to his place, coffee and donuts in hand. As he soaks up the morning sun he wonders if Marcus has woken up yet.

Ben pops Puffin on the floor and he races off down the hall to the lounge, paws making a cute little clicking noise as he bounds along. Ben kicks off his shoes, and strips back down to his boxers, climbing back into bed and stowing the coffee and donuts on his bedside table. Marcus has shifted in his sleep, but still looks peaceful, one arm arched above his head, curled under a pillow. It’s now 9am, so Ben figures it’s fair game to wake him up, as long as he has offerings of caffeine and sugar. “Marcus…” He softly sings.

“Spooky…” He sings softly again. Still nothing. Ben leans in and kisses Marcus’ shoulder gently, peppering his collar bone with chaste kisses. “Marcus…wake up….” Ben smiles into the crook of his shoulder as he kisses the prickly, stubbled line of Marcus’ jaw. “I’ve got do-nutssssss.” Ben can tell that he’s close to pulling Marcus from the heavy weight of sleep and keeps kissing gently across his chest. “Ed Gein was a cannibal…” He giggles to himself quietly and smiles when he hears Marcus groan comically.

“Ed Gein was NOT a cannibal Benjamin Kissel.” His eyes flutter open sleepily, looking up at Ben and smiling.

“Oh there you are! Good morning Sweetheart!” Ben leans in to kiss Marcus, enjoying the sleepy groans. He pulls away, remembering his early morning adventure with Puffin. “Hungry? I got coffee. AND DONUTS!”

“All that kissin' has got me a certain kinda hungry Darlin’. I’m not sure donuts are going to hit the spot this time.”

“That’ll happen!” Ben laughs.

Marcus shuffles over and takes the bag from the bedside table, nibbling at a donut and humming quietly in appreciation. “Nope. Still hungry for something more substantial.” He sucks the sugar glaze off his fingers and winks. The blush creeping it’s way up Ben’s cheeks makes him a little giddy.

“Too far?” He asks, worried he’s being too forward with Ben, climbing into his bed at night and now hitting on him first thing in the morning.

“Waking up with you in my bed had me a certain kinda hungry too Pet, but my mother raised me well, so I got you donuts. It was Puffin’s idea really.”

“Oh really?”

“Oh for sure. He’s a real people pleaser, that one.”

Marcus sits up and yells down the hallway. “Thanks for the sugar fix Puffbear!” Marcus leans up to give Ben a quick ‘thank you’ kiss and flops back down onto the pile of soft pillows covering Ben’s bed.

“You taste like donut!” Ben grins. “Told you you’d taste sweet. So you’re a certain kinda hungry huh?”

Ben scoots closer to Marcus and sits up a little so he’s leaning over the smaller man. Marcus nods enthusiastically. “So hungry.” He groans out loudly as Ben leans in and resumes his attack on his chest, licking and kissing at the pale freckled flesh beneath him.

“You sound so pretty Sweetheart.”

Ben pushes Marcus down so he is laying amongst his pillows once more, and climbs over so that he is straddling him. “Not squishing you am I Pet?”

Marcus gives a definite roll of his hips, grinding himself against Ben.

“I’m GOOD here.” He grins. “I thought it was meant to be ME in YOUR lap though Darlin’” He cants his hips upwards, grinding his growing erection into Ben’s ass again.

“Uh huh, good point. I’ll move. Sorry.” His voice drips with sarcasm as he leans to get up- Marcus interrupting.   
  
“I mean… that can wait for our second date, right?”

“Marcus Parks, back at again being a presumptuous Percy.” Ben chuckles, and watches as Marcus pouts in response. “No, I really should keep my word. Your lap is free once more.” He wriggles off of Marcus’ lap but settles between his legs and grins.

“Whatcha doin’ Ben?”

“What do you think i’m doing Marcus?”

“I dunno, but you have a look on your face that seems mighty mischievous…”

Ben loops his thumbs under the waistband of Marcus’ boxers and playfully pulls at the fabric, toying with it as he holds eye contact. “May I?” Still sleepy, all Marcus can do is nod.

Ben slowly slides Marcus’ boxers down, freeing his erection. The brunette sighs contently to himself as Ben takes him in hand, pumping slowly. “Mind if I taste you Pet? See if you taste as sweet as I think you will?” Marcus sighs out a “yes” and Ben licks a stripe along the side of his shaft, still stroking slowly. He slowly rolls his tongue teasingly around the head of Marcus’ cock before sinking down as deep as he can to start with. It takes every bit of Marcus’ self control not to buck into Ben’s mouth. It’s been so long since he’s been touched, he feels like every inch of his body is tingling with warmth. His hand finds it’s way to Ben’s hair, carding his fingers through his thick red locks.

“Oh Gosh.” Marcus pants. “You’re stupidly good at that Benjamin…”

Ben pulls off of Marcus’ cock with a wet ‘pop’ and pants a little. “I just aim to please Sweetheart. I’m not doing that great of a job obviously, you’re still coherent!” He winks and then sinks back down, taking Marcus to the back of his throat before bobbing back up, starting a frantic pace for himself. Marcus’ fist tightens in his hair as he groans out loudly. Ben shifts on the bed, changing angles, having to stop momentarily. Marcus lets out a small whine at the loss of contact and warmth. “Shhhh, I’ve got you” Ben whispers. Marcus sighs again as Ben sinks back down, causing Marcus’ breath to hitch as he feels the head of his cock press at the back of Ben’s throat persistently. Ben breathes deeply before pushing further, taking Marcus down his throat until he can go no further. He pauses for a moment, getting his bearings before swallowing around the cock in his throat, causing Marcus to hiss with pleasure. Ben can hear his name being whined over and over and he smiles as best as possible, taking great pleasure in making Marcus fall to pieces. He sets a steady pace for himself, stroking the thick cock in his mouth in time with his movements and swallows. Ben leans into the gentle fingers running through his hair as Marcus mutters above him, the light of morning still dancing across his chest as he breathes heavily.

“Ben!” Marcus whines, writhing underneath the larger man. “Ben, i’m so fucking close.”

Groaning quietly at how needy Marcus sounds, Ben slows his pace and comes up for breath, panting a little. He laves his tongue over the head of Marcus’ cock one last time before shuffling up so he is perched on his lap once more. “May I kiss you?”

“Please!”

Ben leans down and kisses Marcus slowly, melting into him. He smiles into the kiss as Marcus groans, responding beautifully to him snaking his hand between them, stroking him slowly. “You’re so pretty Sweetheart, laid out for me like this. I don’t know what I did to deserve such a lovely surprise this morning.” He leans down and slowly sucks a bruise onto Marcus’ shoulder, the smaller man hissing, pulling at Ben’s hair. He licks and nibbles at Marcus’ bottom lip, tugging at it gently. He hunches over more, giving himself room to pick up the pace, stroking Marcus hard and fast, the smaller man keening beneath him.

“Ben…” His voice sounds broken, pleading. Ben leans down, resting his forehead against Marcus’.

“I’m here, i’ve got you kid. I’ve got you…”

He can feel Marcus tense beneath him so he leans down for a kiss, Marcus whimpering into his parted mouth as he cums almost violently across his stomach. “I’ve got you.” Ben repeats, slowing his strokes as Marcus rides out his orgasm. Once he’s caught his breath, Marcus opens his eyes slowly, blinking as his eyes focus on the man in front of him.

He chuckles softly. “You’re real good at that.” He watches, biting at his lip as Ben licks his hand clean, grinning mischievously.

“You were right.”

“Oh? About?” Marcus smirks.

“Your DNA is almost pure sugar, you taste like Fruity Pebbles…” He winks goofily.

Marcus shrugs, laughing drowsily.

“Good thing i’ve got quite the sweet tooth…”


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a super short one, sorry my dudes.  
I 100% respond to friendly harassment and nagging if you want me to get more done haha

“Do uhhhh, do you want a hand there Benjamin?” Marcus nods towards the obvious tenting in Ben’s boxers.

“I probably should have run this past you first but I kinda thought we could go meet Henry for lunch? Which would mean leaving pretty soon?”

“Kinda thought? Or we’re having a lunch date with ‘Cast Iron Polish Stomach’ Henry?”

“Whichever one makes me seem less forgetful and presumptuous?” Ben grins lopsidedly, stretching out on the bed before curling back around Marcus.

Marcus leans into the arm draped around him. “If you’re paying i’m in. I kinda miss that idiot anyway.”

“Oh hey now! Henry Zebrowski is a dear friend of mine! And if anyone is going to call him an idiot, it’s me! And believe me, he’s an idiot.”

“But he’s your idiot…” Marcus smiles softly.

“Yeah. He’s my idiot.”

***********

“So have ya’ll fucked yet?”

Ben thinks he might just choke on his coffee, spluttering loudly. Henry smacks him on the back loudly, laughing deviously.

“Gracious Henry!”

“Gone all shy on me Kissel? What about you Spooky Marcus? Did you climb Kissel like a tree? Did you get a look at his lumber? Oh! Oh! Did he go down on you and yell ‘TIMMMMMBERRRRR!’?”

“A gentleman never kisses and tells!” Marcus grins slyly, nudging Ben’s knee gently under the table affectionately.

“I can’t believe you’re holdin’ out on me Kissel. You haven’t gone full ’50 Shades’ on him yet?”

Ben groans loudly, hiding his face in his hands. “Leave it alone Zebrowski…”

“Oh come on! You’ve got my attention now!” Marcus grins, hand on Ben’s thigh under the table.

“You’re gonna venture into Ben’s spare room that he’s got locked up all private like, Ed Gein style… and it’s gonna be like that freakin’ Guy Fieri meme. You know? The 50 Shades of Grey Flavor Town one?”

“You gonna take me to Flavor Town Ben?” Marcus is practically cackling at this point, a little winded from laughing.

“Ben’s gonna give you a taste of his ‘Donkey Sauce’ Marcus!”

Henry leans across the table and high fives Marcus in front of Ben’s face with a loud slap.

It’s quite cute, Marcus thinks, how Ben is now sitting with his arms crossed, pouting. Pouting like a grumpy, indignant child. “Great, now you’re ganging up on me.”

“Oh Darlin’ i’m sorry. We’ll put a pin in this for now huh? You’re not getting away without an explanation though.” He shrugs at Ben, sipping at his coffee.  
  
“Later kid, later.” Ben grumbles, taking Marcus’ hand and squeezes gently.


	11. Chapter 11

Marcus watches the easy way that Ben and Henry interact, smiling quietly to himself. He’s so used to seeing them separately that the three of them being together seems slightly surreal. Seeing Henry outside of those harsh fluorescent lights, sober (well, he assumes) and giggling at Ben’s almost constant jokes and insults is strangely endearing. Sitting back and sipping on his coffee he watches Ben and catches himself admiring the way the sun plays with his scruffy, unkempt ginger hair. What a strange thing to notice, he laughs to himself. He’s also just so damn…big? Marcus isn’t stupid, he’s picked up on the subtle ways that Ben leads their conversations and their…what? Relationship? The way he seems to try to take care of him? This is all so new between them so he wasn’t entirely sure if it was just Ben trying to romance him…but Henry’s comments sure do add a whole lot of context. He’s itching to have a proper conversation with Ben about this but can’t resist pushing just a little further.

“Gentlemen, if you’ll excuse me, i’ve gotta take a piss.”

Henry snorts. “Tell ‘em I sent you, you’ll get a good seat!”

Marcus can hear the boy bickering as he walks off, smiling.

“You sit when you pee!? Who ARE you?!”

“Kissel, let me tell you something…”

  
Marcus locks himself in a bathroom stall and sets his phone on the toilet paper dispenser, angling it so that his front facing camera captures his body from the shoulders down. He hits record and begins rucking his shirt up with one hand, revealing the pale expanse of his stomach as he gently grazes his fingers across his body. He trails his fingers from his belt buckle upwards, through the small patch of hair leading up to his navel, continuing to swipe a thumb over a nipple. He groans quietly to himself, and smiles off camera, hoping his phone picked that up. His hand slides from his chest, joining the other as he begins unbuttoning the top of his shirt slowly. He gets half way and pauses, running his hand softly over the light patch of chest hair peaking out through his shirt. He runs his hand over his chest, tracing his fingers over one collar bone before moving to the other, pulling his shirt aside to reveal the fresh bruise that has bloomed on his shoulder from this morning. Marcus pushes on it lightly, hissing with pain slightly before groaning. He desperately wants Ben to mark him all over and perhaps this will encourage him a little. He smiles to himself again and trails his hands down his shirt to his belt, unbuckling is teasingly slowly. He thumbs the buttons open and slides the zipper down, revealing his boxers which are at this point, damp and awkwardly tented.

Cautious of how long he’s been in the bathroom, he leans over and stops recording and tinkers with his phone to snip the video to remove the non essential bits at the beginning and end. He huffs out a laugh as he sends it to Ben.

Marcus: I’m definitely going to need an explanation soon.

Feeling bold, he sends another quick text.

Marcus: Sir.

He walks back through the cafe and stops short, standing where he can’t be seen by Ben and watches as he reaches for his phone. Ben’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise initially, taking in what he’s seeing. Marcus sees the moment where his demeanour shifts, his eyes narrowing, swallowing hard. The cafe is loud enough that he’s sure Henry can’t hear any noise coming from the video, and judging by how long Ben’s been glaring at his phone, he’s probably watched the video twice now. Marcus slinks back over to the table and plops himself down. “Massive line for the toilet, sorry!” Ben looks over at Marcus and quirks an eyebrow, Marcus shrugging apologetically.

“I thought you’d finally realised you were fixin’ to bang Big Foot, got scared of the monster cock that is no doubt hiding in those jeans, and finally bolted! Henry laughs, elbowing Marcus gently.

“Oh I’m a total slut for cryptid cock, says so on my Tinder profile you know…” Marcus cackles, Henry joining in.

“You’re still on Tinder?” Ben asks quietly.

“Uh oh!”

“Zip-it Zebrowski.” Ben snarks.

“I mean…yeah? We hadn’t talked about whether we were an official ‘thing’ now, or what. Apparently there’s a few things we haven’t talked about yet hmmm?” Marcus puts his hand on Ben’s knee and squeezes gently. “But if Ben Kissel wants to be my boyfriend i’ll delete the app right now if he wants.” He wiggles his eyebrows for effect.

“Your phone appears to be ringing.” Marcus’ phone is vibrating loudly on the table.

“Not the answer I was looking for Ben, but thanks?” He reaches down to flip his phone over and sighs loudly.

“It’s Holden.”

“What a dumb fuckin’ name. Who’s Holden?” Henry asks, mouth currently full of pancake.

“My boss, I gotta take this”

Marcus wanders outside to talk to his boss, leaving Ben and Henry alone again.

“You really like him huh?”

“Yeah. Yeah I do.” Ben sighs.

“Be good to him Ben, he seems like a good guy. You never date anyone with an ounce of personality. He’s not the timid little thing you usually go for, he’ll do you some good!”

“Yes Mom.” Ben smiles.

Marcus walks up behind Ben and wraps his arms over his shoulders, leaning in to whisper in his ear. “I gotta go into work, wanna walk me out?”

“Marcus is ditching us for work, hang here for a sec while I walk him out?”

“Boooo! Lettin’ the man get you down huh Spook? I’ll see you around.”

Ben leads the smaller man through the cafe and around the corner where its a little more quiet. “I have such an awkward hard on right now Marcus Parks, I hope you’re very happy.” Marcus leans in, Ben wrapping an arm around his waist.

“Oh, very.”

“Can I come visit you at work tonight?”

“Only if you bring coffee” Marcus grins widely.

“I wouldn’t dream of depriving you of coffee Sweetheart, i’m already learning how to keep you smiling. At least I hope.”

“You better get back in there, i’d put money down that Henry has eaten at least half of your bacon by now…”

“Let him, I had a pretty filing meal this morning” Ben winks dramatically and giggles. He leans down for a quick kiss.

“I’ll see you later Benjamin”

“Later, Sweetheart.”


	12. Chapter 12

As usual it’s been a long, long time since Marcus had seen a customer. His shift felt like it was going in slow motion, like he’d accidentally toggled life to half speed. He’d finished his book, and in his haste to get to work to cover Eddie’s shift, he hadn’t grabbed a new one. His twitter feed wasn’t holding his attention, and no one of interest was awake on Facebook at this time. He flicked around on his phone, occupying his hands more than anything. He smirked as he remembered his glib comment from earlier in the day. “If Ben Kissel wants to be my boyfriend i’ll delete the app right now if he wants” He murmurs to himself, hovering his thumb over the Tinder icon on his screen, poised to delete it. Instead he taps out a quick message to Ben.

Marcus: So Tinder can go, yeah?

He shoves his phone in his pocket and tries to distract himself by rearranging and tidying while he waits for a reply. He opens the door to the walk in cool room that backs onto the drink and dairy fridges, noticing that the milk has been jumbled around and looks like it’s been stocked by an uncoordinated toddler. “Henry.” Marcus sets to reorganising the milk, keeping a watchful eye on his counter through the rows of drinks in front of him. He’s startled a little when his phone buzzes in his pocket.

Ben: Goodness gracious Marcus Parks!  
  
Ben: Are you asking me

Ben: …to go steady?

Marcus: You’re an asshole.

He punctuates the last text with an eye roll emoji.

Ben: But i’m YOUR asshole.

Ben: I’ll see you soon Kid

There’s a heart emoji at the end of Ben’s text.

Marcus tucks his phone back into his pocket, smiling. A fucking love heart. Speaking of love hearts, he can tell right now that he has an absolutely dopey, heart eyed look on his face right now and chuckles. The milk isn’t going to fix itself, he sighs, trying to distract himself until Ben stops by.

It’s a little after 2am when Marcus hears a familiar voice, pulling his concentration away from the youtube video he’s watching quietly. “You better have ordered more jerky Spooky Marcus, or i’m going to have to find another place to shop. I only come here because ya’ll are cheap- service here is fucking abysmal!” Henry grins, picking up a six pack of beer before heading to the isle that has recently been restocked with a large order of jerky.

“Number one, I know where you live and we are the closest convenience store open at this hour and you’re a lazy fuck who won’t walk further than this after 6 beers… and number two, you find my service to be charming and refreshing, thank you very much.”

“I’m not Kissel, your ‘so called’ charm doesn’t work on me Spooky Dook. You just know too much about me now so I either have to befriend you or have you whacked. So far i’m leaning one way.” He shrugs noncommittally. The door chimes behind Henry. "Saved by the bell Skeletor!”

“You ARE rather thin kid, have you eaten tonight?” Ben smiles, walking up to the counter holding out a take out bag full of Thai food. Marcus can smell it already and feels his stomach growl in anticipation.

“Thanks Dad…” Marcus teases, sticking his tongue out.

“You’re such a brat Marcus Parks, we’re going to have to do something about that.” Ben smirks, quirking an eyebrow.

“Oh?”

“What happens if you need to take a break? Do you lock up or what?” He asks, hoping to sound casual.

“Nah, we generally don’t do that unless we absolutely have to. I have to punch a security code in to lock up and Holden gets on my ass if he notices me doing that. We pretty much don’t take breaks and just eat at the counter.”

“Henry!” Ben yells to the back of the store, where the smaller man is kneeling on the floor, surrounded by jugs of milk with varying expiry dates. “Stop fucking with the milk and come watch the counter for a minute while Marcus has a lunch break out the back?”

Ben flinches as a sock hits him square in the face, followed by a shoe for good measure, which Ben manages to dodge narrowly. “Put a fuckin’ sock on the door won’t ya Kissel? So no one busts in and interrupts you inspecting Spooky’s merchandise!” Marcus blushes deeply, a reaction that doesn’t go unnoticed by Ben.

“You uhhh…gonna be alright for a minute?” Marcus looks utterly concerned at the thought of leaving Henry of all people in charge of the store, no matter how short of a time.

“I’ve worked menial retail work as a grunt before Marcus, I can’t fuck this up too bad!” He shrugs, flopping down on Marcus’ chair, settling in to eat the open pack of Hobnobs on the counter.

“He’ll be employee of the month before we know it! Come on kid.” Ben leads Marcus by the hand into the cool room. He’s been in the store enough by now to be familiar with it’s layout. Marcus shivers a little as they walk in, having left his flannel shirt draped over his chair behind the counter. “You cold Pet?”

Marcus smiles sheepishly. “Yeah, a little…” Ben shrugs off his denim jacket and helps Marcus into it. They’re similar in height but the jacket looks almost comical on the smaller man, causing Ben to grin widely.

“I don’t know why I find this so attractive but i’m into you wearing my clothes apparently.” He walks Marcus backwards until he bumps into the wall softly. Marcus drapes his arms over the redhead’s shoulders, the cuffs of the sleeves covering his hands. “It’s something I could get used to.” Ben leans in for a kiss, humming gently into Marcus’ mouth happily. “Although the idea of you in no clothes obviously has it’s appeal…” He lifts Marcus’ arms from his shoulders, pinning them above the brunette’s head. Marcus shivers as he realises that Ben can hold his arms in place with one large hand. Ben slides his spare hand under Marcus’ shirt, gently tracing his fingers over the pale stomach before him. “I liked the video you sent me this morning… although I didn’t appreciate your timing much.”

“Mmmmm?” Marcus smile up at Ben coyly. “Couldn’t help myself, you seemed to need a nudge.”

Ben sucks at the bruise on Marcus’ shoulder gently, something he’s been wanting to do since he opened the video earlier. It had taken a lot off physical restraint to not react to the show Marcus had put on for him, even more restraint for him to not leave the table and find him. “…And why would I need a nudge Sweetheart?”

“I get the feeling-“ Marcus hisses as Ben sucks down hard on his other shoulder, biting softly. “…I get the feeling you're holding back.”

“You're so impatient!” Ben leans back to admire the matching bruise he’s just administered.

“Yeah…well I was kinda hoping to return the favour from this morning, is all.”

“You DID leave me with a very, VERY awkward boner earlier…” Ben smiles as he kisses his way along Marcus’ sharp jawline. “Has anyone ever told you you’re kinda pushy when you’re horny?”

“I thought that was meant to be you, at least that’s the impression Henry gave me.”

“I mean…” Ben huffs out a small laugh. “He’s not entirely wrong. My dick wants me to hold you against this wall and screw the living daylights out of you while you try not to give us away with that loud mouth of yours…” Marcus grins deviously at Ben’s suggestion. “The other part of me has a fucking heart boner, a heart-on shall we say… for you looking like a fuckin’ kid in my jacket right now. Wants to take it a little slower with you.”

“Ben Kissel, the big softy.”

“Nothing soft about me right now Sweetheart, if you’re still volunteering?”

Marcus considers for a moment, taking in the flushed face and messy hair of the man in front of him. He smiles and nods, trying his best to show Ben that while yes, he has a bit of a mouth on him, that he can also be the subservient companion that Ben no doubt wants. Ben leans in for a crushing kiss, dropping the hand that was restraining Marcus, running his fingers through the brunette’s light curls and pushing them from his face. “You’re such a brat Marcus Parks, what are we going to do about that?” He continues to run his fingers through the brunette’s curls softly, stroking his cheeks with the back of his hands in a moment of surprising tenderness. “Are you going to show me that you can behave Sweetheart?”

Marcus nods, hands dropping from Ben’s shoulders to his waistline. As always Marcus can’t help himself and swipes his hands over Ben’s ass, earning a snort of laughter from the larger man, before coming to rest on his belt buckle. “I have no idea what to do with you kid, you’re somethin’ different to what i’m used to…”

“I know exactly what to do Darlin’, don’t you worry yourself.” Marcus unbuckles Ben’s belt with quick, deft movements, sinking to his knees. He smiles to himself as he shirks Ben’s boxers down, taking his cock in hand, pumping experimentally before laving his tongue over it’s leaking head. Ben flinches slightly, causing Marcus to look up at him questioningly, blue eyes almost sparkling in the white fluorescent lighting of the cool room. The redhead hisses as Marcus takes him to the back of his throat, pulling back slowly before plunging down again, starting a steady rhythm.

“It’s so fucking cold in here Sweetheart, you feel so good, you LOOK so good- mouth wrapped around my cock like that.” He holds Marcus’ hair away from his face, engrossed in the graphic display before him. Continuing to card his fingers through the brown hair before him, Ben clenches a fist when he feels Marcus lick a flat stripe up the underside of his cock teasingly. His face is flushed, not only with cold but it’s also a give away that he is now uncomfortably hard in his jeans. He hears the door chime and his eyes flicker quickly to the glass doors behind Ben.

“Henry is fine, he’s a big boy.”

Marcus nods, as much as possible in his current position. Ben experimentally rocks into the wet mouth in front of him, groaning quietly. “Keep quiet Sweetheart…you don’t want your break to be interrupted or cut short right?” Ben pulls out and teasingly runs his cock over Marcus’ lips. The smaller man whines when Ben pulls away, looking down at him. “Do you like sucking your boyfriend’s cock in public? I saw the way you blushed earlier. There are-“ Ben turns and peeks out the fridge doors. “There are 2 people, 3 if we’re counting Henry, who could see you blowing me right now. How does my brat feel about that huh?”

As if on queue a customer opens a door further down the cool room, a rush of cold air brushing past them both as the woman seems to take forever to collect the item she’s searching for. Ben slides two fingers into Marcus’ mouth to make sure he stays quiet while the door is open, but it’s him that gasps quietly when Marcus sucks and licks at the fingers, coating them with drool. The door slams shut with a loud thud and they can hear Henry bullshitting his way through a transaction. Ben makes a mental note that he probably owes Henry a six pack of beer, perhaps more for this.

Ben slides his fingers from Marcus’ mouth and wraps them around his cock, stroking firmly to coat himself in Marcus’ saliva. “I think we better hurry up and relieve Henry of his cashiering duties, don’t you think…Darlin’?” He laughs gruffly, his breath clouding in the cold.

“Yes... Daddy.” Marcus winks comically.

“No!” Ben interrupts indignantly, just as Marcus is about to sink back down on his cock.

The brunette giggles. “No?”

“No Daddy! Jesus H Christ!”

“Sir?” Marcus beams up at him, shit eating grin as always as he continues to stroke Ben slowly.

“How are you ruining perfectly acceptable nicknames? What is going on here? The thought of you calling me Daddy makes me want to hurl.”

“What have your…uhhh…other... people called you?”

“…Daddy. Sir. Fucking Hell.”

“Let’s stick with Benjamin huh?” Marcus smiles widely before swirling his tongue over the head of Ben’s cock, eliciting a groan.

“Sure, sure. Fuck! Your mouth feels so fucking hot and like- “ Marcus sinks down and begins a rapid pace, sucking with hollowed cheeks. “Fuck! Like God damn velvet! You’re gonna make me cum Kid.” Ben groans loudly and slams his fist into the wall in front of him. Henry chuckles… he definitely heard that loud and clear. Fucking Kissel. Ben can’t help but fuck into Marcus’ mouth at this point, and to his credit, Marcus moans around the cock in his mouth like his life depends on it. Ben’s grip on Marcus’ hair tightens and he can tell he can’t last much longer.

“Kid, i’m gonna- “ Marcus taps him on the hip, giving him a quick thumbs up. Ben thrusts erratically into Marcus’ mouth, slamming his fist against the wall above his head again as he cums forcefully, the brunette eagerly swallowing down everything Ben has to give him. Ben cards his fingers gently through Marcus’ hair, wiping away the tears watering from his eyes. Once he’s caught his breath Marcus stands, arms once again flung over the taller man’s shoulders, fingers lacing behind his head. The redhead leans in for a kiss, smiling into it as he hears the door chime sound again. “We really should rescue him.”

“Yeah, I guess. He’s probably eaten half my jerky since we’ve been in here.”

“I’m sure I can cover that, I guess that’s the cost of having a wing man, right?”  
  
Marcus snorts as he giggles. “I can’t imagine he’s a very convincing wing man!” Ben leans in for another kiss, lingering for a moment.

“Well, we’re here aren’t we?” Smiling softly, he leads Marcus from the cool room, back through to the counter where Henry is currently video chatting with a tall, gorgeous woman. “Hey Natalie!” Ben chirps.

Henry points the phone in their direction, taking a mental note of Marcus drowning in Ben’s huge denim jacket. “These two assholes just took an extended lunch break. Marcus managed to leave his lunch at the counter…” Henry gestures to the untouched take out bags sitting where Ben left them. “I’m sure Kissel gave him something to eat though, amirite?” He cackles.


	13. Chapter 13

Henry chats animatedly to Natalie behind the counter while Ben and Marcus wander the isles of the store hand in hand. “He seems pretty enamoured by that girl…” Marcus smiles up at Ben.

“Yeah, he is. It’s good to see him happy. Natalie is fantastic, it definitely takes a special kind of crazy to put up with Henry and she’s a perfect fit.” He squeezes the brunette’s hand gently, pulling him to a stop. Brushing the stray hairs from Marcus’ face, he leans in for a soft kiss. “What time do you get off?”

“I’m dying to get off right now…” He wiggles his eyebrows and gives an over exaggerated wink.

“Oh i’ll bet. I’d love to do something about that for you Pet. What time do you finish work?”

Marcus pushes the sleeve of Ben’s jacket up to check his watch, earning a small smile from the taller man. “About 3 hours time.”

“Wanna have a sleep over, Marcus Parks?”

“Oh God that sounds good. Can we go to my place? I gotta feed Georgie.”

“I get a VIP tour of Spooky Marcus’ crypt? I’m in! I’ll get Henry to feed Puff Bear.”

“I do not live in a fucking crypt. You’ve been listening to Henry’s ranting haven’t you?” He laughs gently, leaning into Ben for a hug.

“Hey! All I know is that I have a very, very attractive boyfriend, whom I’m looking forward to hailing, over and over and over. Also yes, I said boyfriend, shut up about it, geez!” He grins widely.

“You wanna hail me huh?” Marcus stands on his tip toes to catch Ben in a soft kiss, his hands now roaming over the taller man’s back.

“I mean, i’m open to watching you hail yourself too Sweetheart…” He huffs a gentle laugh that gets swallowed by Marcus’ insistent kisses. “You seem to like putting on shows for me.”

“Mmmm, I do.” Marcus can feel himself starting to melt into Ben, the kisses deepening rapidly. He forgets where he is for a moment, the door chime jolting him back to reality. Ben leans in, whispering in his ear as a group of teenagers walk past them down the isle.

“That video you sent me, seeing how hard you were for me…made me very, very happy Pet. Knowing that i’m going to get to hear you whimper and groan again… I could easily drag you back in that cool room right now.” Marcus pulls back reluctantly, to stare at the now disheveled man in front of him.

“You look like sin personified right now Benjamin Kissel. I need to go do some work before Henry sells those kids cigarettes or booze. I’ll see you soon though?” He stretches up again for a kiss. Ben almost growls into his mouth.

“I can’t wait to see you later kid.” Their kiss is heated and lingering, Ben pulling away, almost frowning. “Zebrowski! Time to jet!” Henry jogs down the isle, swiping a bag of Doritos on his way past. Marcus giggles as he notices his name tag pinned to Henry’s shirt.

“Consider this payment for covering your shift Spooky Dook.” He helps himself to a fist full before pointing at Ben. “You…you owe me big, big boy!” The two men turn and leave, Ben looking over his shoulder to smile at Marcus.

“Hail yourself Marcus.”

“Oh, I will Ben.”

**********

Ben leaves it a good half hour before texting Marcus. He can’t get the brunette out of his head and he’s itching to see him again. His body doesn’t care one bit that he’s already gotten off today, he’s getting uncomfortably hard considering he’s walking around in public. Luckily it’s very early morning so there’s not many people wandering the streets at this time. He feels so confusingly conflicted when he’s around Marcus. Normally he prefers to be the one steering and controlling his relationships. Likes taking the lead and well…if he’s being honest, he usually gets off on being controlling in the bedroom too. It’s usually pretty easy, given his size. He’s quite intimidating when he wants and needs to be. But he can’t find it in himself to be like that around Marcus. As soon as he in the same room he can feel his guard dropping and his gentle side fighting for dominance.

He sighs and grabs his phone from his pocket.

Ben: Can’t stop thinking about that talented mouth of yours Sweetheart.

Marcus glances over to his vibrating phone, grinning.

Marcus: Is that so, Darlin’?

Ben: You’re not the only one with a talented mouth though…

Marcus: Oh… I remember.

Marcus: Vividly.

Marcus: So does my dick apparently, you’re such a nuisance Benjamin Kissel, getting me hard AGAIN.

Ben: Not long pet. Show me.

Marcus: Show you?

Ben: Show me what i’m doing to you… come on Kid.

Marcus rolls his eyes, laughing. He knows all too well that there are cameras pointed directly at the counter, for his safety at that. He also knows that if he scoots his chair a little to the right, he’s obscured enough by the scratch ticket display that he might be able to sneak a slightly more SFW picture than what Ben’s asking for. Palming himself through thick black jeans, a quiet groan escapes his lips as he snaps a picture and hits send.

Ben: Fuck! I’m so hard Sweetheart.

Ben: More...  
  
Marcus sighs heavily with frustration. The next few hours are going to take forever to pass. He pauses for a moment, deciding if sneaking into the bathroom for a moment, just to snap one photo would be worth possibly getting in trouble. His phone buzzes insistently again.

Ben: Please. You’re killing me here beautiful.

Marcus feels his cheeks flush as he slips into the single bathroom they have. He leaves the door ajar, hoping to hear the door chime if it sounds. Looking at himself in the mirror he can see just how on edge and exhausted he looks right now. He could sleep for about ten years, but he also looks like he’s spent the last ten years in bed with Ben. He shivers slightly… “Soon” he thinks. It’s not the most romantic or sexy setting, the work bathroom… but Marcus makes it work as he pulls himself from his pants and gives his cock a few pumps. He snaps a photo in the mirror, showing himself slicking his cock with a string of drool, hair obscuring his face. Taking a deep breath, he reminds himself that he’s at work and really, REALLY shouldn’t be doing this. He watches the three dots on his screen appear as Ben types.

Ben: I was planning on eating your ass until you whimper and cry my name when we get to your place.

Ben: But I can’t now.

Ben: I’m dead.

Ben: RIP

Marcus: Well I guess you’re gonna have to rise from your grave Darlin’.

He sends a short clip of himself, again shot in the mirror. His eyes are closed, lip bitten as he steadily strokes his cock. He remembers how delicious Ben’s mouth felt around his cock, how endearingly distracting it was feeling his beard between his thighs. He pants a little, remembering suddenly to stop filming and hit send.

Marcus: I guess if you’re dead i’ll just have to hail myself, huh?

Ben: Don’t you dare.

Ben: Stop.

Ben: If you’re gonna cum tonight, it’s gonna be on my cock Marcus Parks.

Marcus: Ok, ok.

The grin on his face is enormous, and the blush on his cheeks is a deep, deep red thanks to that last text from Ben.

Marcus: I’ve stopped!

Marcus sighs again, dressing himself properly, straightening his shirt and fixing hair. He heads back to the counter and sinks down in his chair. He’s painfully on edge after the events of today and he just wants to finish work and see Ben.

Ben: I’ll see you soon, and then we’ll get an uber to yours, yeah?

Marcus: Yes, sir.

The brunette grins, kicking his feet up on the counter and opening a bag of cereal to snack on while he waits.


	14. Chapter 14

The uber to Marcus’ apartment is silent and filled with tension. Ben grips Marcus’ hand and rubs circles with his thumb. With his other hand he taps out an awkward text, refusing to let go of the brunette’s hand.

Ben: I can’t wait to see you whimpering and flushed beneath me.

He tucks his phone back in his jacket pocket and watches as Marcus reads the message. Even in the early morning light Ben can see the blush creeping up his cheeks. Marcus smiles softly, leaning his head against the car window, watching the scenery pass by. A yawn gets the better of him as he admires the colours of the sunrise above the buildings they’re passing. Ben can't help but melt a little as he watches Marcus. He groans internally as he realises that he’s definitely starting to feel something for the other man. Henry would have a field day with this if he knew how he really felt. 

The car pulls up at Marcus’ apartment building and Ben gives the hand in his a reassuring squeeze before getting out. Marcus punches his code into the buildings security door and leads Ben up the many flights of stairs by the hand, occasionally glancing backwards and smiling. Ben’s thoughts wander as he follows Marcus, and it occurs to him that he’d follow Marcus almost anywhere. The thought makes him shake his head sheepishly and grin despite himself. Ben’s arms snake around Marcus’ waist as he unlocks the door to his apartment, his lips and teeth worrying at the brunette’s neck. Leaning back into Ben for a moment, Marcus sighs contently before pushing his door open, triggering tiny but loud barks from his dog, Georgie. 

Scooping Georgie up, Marcus kicks his shoes off in the hall and pads down towards the kitchen. “You mind if I have a coffee real quick? I’m a little wrecked this morning.” He snuggles Georgie to his chest, cuddling the small dog affectionately. 

“You think you’re already wrecked huh Parks?” Ben grins, sitting down clumsily on a bar stool at Marcus’ breakfast nook.

“You’re such a dang flirt Benjamin Kissel!”

“Oh kid, you don’t know the half of it.”

“Well Darlin’, i’m hoping you’ll show me.”

“Hurry up and drink your damn coffee.” Ben laughs, face crinkling affectionately at the smaller man.

Ben wanders around Marcus’ apartment as the brunette sips his coffee, cross legged on the couch. He starts his tour by carefully inspecting Marcus’ cabinet of what can only be called oddities. Taxidermy creatures, bones, teeth, jars, pieces of old surgical equipment. Ben’s eyebrow quirks upwards, curiously as he takes note of each item. He then moves onto the vast cd and record collection, taking up at least half of the main wall in the living room. He nods with approval when he happens upon bands he knows and enjoys, but doesn’t know many if he’s being honest. Ben lets his hands brush over each of the many books on the shelves, plucking any of interest out for further inspection. “You sure do have a lot of uhhh… well…spooky books and uhhh…things?”

“Henry calls me ‘Spooky Marcus’ for a reason I guess…” He shrugs, smiling into his mug. 

“You two are meant to be friends, you’re cut from the same weird ass, creepy nerd fabric. Actually no, you’re cut from much prettier, softer fabric.”

“Ben…?”

“Mmmm?”

“You’re babbling.”

“Drink you’re damn drink kid!” Ben laughs, sitting down again at the breakfast nook. Marcus unfolds himself from the couch and slides his mug onto the counter behind Ben, leaning in to loop his arms under Ben’s for a snuggle. He pulls Ben to himself and gives him a soft, sweet kiss. Minutes pass as they slowly and softly melt into each other’s kisses, groaning and sighing quietly. At this point the sun is casting soft pools of morning light on the floor of Marcus’ apartment through his large bay windows. They lean in to each other for a moment, soaking up the warmth and comfort of each other’s bodies.

“Bedroom?” Ben asks, smiling into a kiss. 

“Please.”

Marcus again takes Ben’s hand and leads him down a narrow hall to his bedroom. This is where Ben gets his second proper look at Marcus’ natural habitat, so to speak. There are old medical diagrams, carefully framed and displayed above his desk as well as a smattering of framed band posters and vinyl covers. A small lamp illuminates the desktop, revealing stacks of comic books and note pads. Ben smiles softly at the fairy lights wrapped around the bed head, twinkling softly. The smile doesn’t escape Marcus’ attention, causing him to tap Ben on the shoulder to prompt him to turn around. 

He begins unbuttoning his flannel, occasionally looking up with bright blue doe eyes to make sure he had Ben’s undivided attention. He needn’t worry, Ben can only see Marcus right now. He sits on the edge of the bed, leaning back on his hands to take in the view before him. “I feel like we need some music…” He laughs quietly. 

“I dance like a new born giraffe Darlin’. I’m trying to get you to fuck me, not laugh at me.” 

“Goodness gracious Marcus Parks, you’ve got quite the mouth on you!”

“You’d know I guess, although i’m happy to give you a reminder whenever you desire…Sir” Marcus smirks at the red head. He is enjoying pushing back at Ben, seeing how far he can go before the other man’s instincts kick in and he puts him in his place again. God, he hopes Ben takes the bait and well…takes control tonight. The blush that creeps up Ben’s cheeks spurs Marcus on as he pulls his shirt over his head. His hair is a shaggy mess once the shirt is tossed on the chair beside his bed. He holds eye contact with Ben as he unbuckles his belt and undoes his jeans, revealing some painfully tented boxers.

“I’m suddenly feeling a little over dressed over here.”

“Oh?” Marcus pads over to the edge of the bed and climbs onto Ben’s lap, startling him a little.

“Mmmhmm.” Ben nods, his eyes sweeping up from Marcus’ pale stomach to his piercing eyes. His hands find their place on the smaller man’s narrow hips, fingers tracing gently along their boney lines. Marcus’ hands snake down and gently tug at the hem of Ben’s shirt, pulling it up slowly above his head as Ben relinquishes his grip. Marcus leans in to pepper Ben’s shoulders with kisses as his hands make quick work of his buttons and zippers. He hasn’t seen Ben topless before and he tries to take note of as many small details as possible in this light, like the galaxy of freckles scattered across his chest and shoulders. He’s always had a soft spot for red heads, and smiles at his luck as he kisses his way from shoulder to shoulder, palming Ben through his boxers impatiently. He smiles again as Ben’s breath hitches as he rubs his thumb in small circles over the head of his cock. 

Ben growls beneath Marcus, coming to his senses a little. He leans in and worries at the bruises on Marcus’s shoulders with his teeth. “They’re never going to heal if you keep at that Darlin’.” Ben sucks down sharply at that, eliciting a hiss of pain that morphs into a wanton groan. 

“Maybe that’s what I want Sweetheart… for you to look in the mirror each day and see those bruises and know you’re mine. For you to ache for me every time those marks make you wince in pain. For every one to see those bruises beneath your collar, knowing that someone has touched you recently, and for you to remember that it was me that was lucky enough to be that person.”

“Is that so Benjamin Kissel?” The brunette teases, although Ben’s words have him absolutely throbbing in his boxers. “You ARE pretty lucky, huh?” He grins, but that’s cut short when Ben hooks his hands under his thighs and shifts forwards, causing him to squeak loudly in surprise as he’s lifted from his position on Ben’s lap. He reaches his arms around Ben’s neck for balance, taking a moment to admire how dishevelled and gorgeous the larger man currently looks.

“Oh, I think you’ll find you’re the one that’s about to get lucky Kid…” Ben grins, as he spins around on his heel and clumsily plonks Marcus down on the bed, both of them giggling as the bed bounces and squeaks under their sudden weight. Ben stands again and shirks his pants off, wriggling out of his boxers. Marcus watches, admiring the pale, freckled expanse of Ben’s body. He squeaks in surprise again as Ben gets to work pulling his jeans off, struggling awkwardly. 

“Shoes first Ben!” He snorts , head thrown back with laughter. 

“Right, yes. Shut up, I knew that. Goodness!”

Finally Marcus is undressed and Ben climbs onto the bed, straddling Marcus’ thighs. “Hi.” 

“Hi Ben.” Marcus doesn’t know why, but he finds himself blushing. This isn’t the first time they’ve been intimate, so he’s not sure why this feels so different?

Leaning in, Ben kisses Marcus softly and sweetly. One hand finds Marcus’, their fingers intertwining gently. The other reaching between them both, grasping Marcus’ cock firmly. Marcus rocks into Ben’s fist impatiently, earning a small tutting sound from Ben. “Slow down Kid.” Ben releases his grip, and he swears he can hear Marcus pout. A small gasp escapes his flushed lips as Ben lines their cocks up, taking them both in hand together between them. Ben’s hand forms a fist around them both, and Marcus can’t help but think that his hands have no business being that big. It makes him shiver pleasantly at the thought of just how big Ben really is, perched on his lap heavily. He thinks back to the morning he woke up in Ben’s bed, and how they’d found themselves in a very similar position to this. This time however, he has a very naked Ben in his lap, and another cock sliding against his, leaking precum. 

Marcus practically mewls as Ben pumps his fist over both of their cocks, rolling his hips and fucking into his fist over and over. “You ok Sweetheart?” The brunette has his eyes scrunched shut, mouth open in a near constant groan. The gentle pink flush of his skin will soon become Ben’s favourite colour as he tries desperately to commit it to memory. 

“Mmmmyeah…” Marcus manages before he gasps, Ben running his thumb over the head of his now painfully hard erection. 

“You getting close Pet? You look so fucking gorgeous right now.”

Marcus is lucid enough to bite his lip in a smile. “Whimpering and flushed beneath you?”

The sudden pause of Ben’s hand makes Marcus instantly regret his playful jab at Ben’s earlier comment. “You are such a gad damn brat Kid.” He leans in and kisses the man beneath him sloppily and hungrily. He rolls his hips into his fist again, pulling quiet moans from Marcus. “Always something to say huh?”

“Mmmhmmm”

“We’ll see…” Ben kisses Marcus’ nose affectionately before getting up from the bed. “Where’s your lube kid?”

“Second drawer on the right in my desk. Condoms too.”

Ben riffles through the draw, taking note of it’s contents. Wet wipes, condoms, lube, a worn leather belt, a ball gag, what Ben assumes is a fleshlight- which piques his interest for a moment, and an assortment of anal toys. He sighs to himself as he mentally catalogues these items, wishing he had the time and patience to explore them all with Marcus this morning. His throbbing hard on is an urgent reminder of the task at hand, prompting him to close the draw and face Marcus. While Ben had been shuffling around the contents of his desk drawers, Marcus had grown impatient and was slowly pumping himself, canting his hips involuntarily as he bites at his bottom lip, trying to keep quiet. 

“Stop.”

The brunette is obviously in his own world right now and continues, tracing his fingers along the length of his erection before thumbing over the head and smearing precum around. 

“Parks!” Ben barks sternly, earning a quiet gasp and instant stillness from the smaller man. 

“What part of you only cumming on my cock are you not getting Kid?” He tosses the small bottle of lube next to Marcus on the bed. “I don’t care if you touch, but at least show me how well you can open yourself up Sweetheart. Show me how badly you want me inside you…”

Marcus sighs to himself with relief. He adores that Ben will let him push back, but right now he just wants to be looked after and told what to do. He’s tired and wants to be cared for, however Ben wants to care for him. Whatever Ben thinks is best. 

Ben tries to keep a stern, unaffected look on his face as he watches Marcus coat his fingers in thick, silky lube before reaching between his open, gangly legs to circle his hole. Ben’s cock betrays him, leaping and twitching at the sight, a low groan escaping his unintentionally parted lips. He watches intently as Marcus pushes a finger tip in, sighing softly at the sensation, head thrown back. Ben finds himself squeezing and stroking his cock teasingly as he watches Marcus finger himself, spread out for the other man to watch. A low, hungry groan escapes him as Marcus begins to scissor his fingers wide, stretching himself out. “You look stunning like this Sweetheart. I could watch you fuck yourself for me forever.”

“Please…” Marcus whines. He’s so worked up at this point, his body flushed a gentle pink colour in anticipation. “Please Ben, I need this so badly. Please.”

Ben busies himself with rolling a condom on while Marcus continues to whine and finger himself open. Climbing back onto the bed, he settles himself between Marcus’ spread legs. He stops for a moment to admire the man in front of him, how beautiful he looks in the gentle light of the lamp and fairy lights. “I’ve got you Kid, i’m here.” He leans in to kiss the brunette gently, taking his arms and laying them above his head, amongst the many pillows. When he runs his fingers down one of Marcus’ outstretched arms, he wiggles beneath him, huffing out a quiet laugh. 

“Oh?” Ben laughs? “Ticklish?”

“Ben! Stop! Please!” He’s full fledged giggling now as Ben repeatedly runs his fingers up and down the sensitive underside of Marcus’ arm. Ben smiles, moving in to swallow those giggles with a hard kiss, releasing Marcus’ arms, which find their way to the taller man’s shoulders, resting there in a gentle embrace. Ben can feel Marcus’ body relax into the kiss, allowing him to line himself up and gently push into Marcus. Marcus groans like he’s on camera, being paid as Ben eases into him slowly, almost teasingly. He bottoms out, sitting back on his heels get get a proper view of himself buried in Marcus’ ass. 

“Baby you look so good wrapped around my cock like this, you’re doing so well for me.” He takes Marcus’ cock in hand and begins a slow pace, pulling out almost completely, then rolling his hips as he bottoms out each time. Ben slicks the cock in his hand with an obscene string of spit, coating it so that it makes a loud squelching sound each time he pumps his fist over it. Marcus feels like his entire body is tingling, that his skin is being licked by soft flames of pleasure. It’s been longer than Marcus would care to admit, since he’s been fucked so his body feels like there are fireworks exploding inside him every time Ben touches him. It’s so overwhelming but delicious, and all Marcus wants to do is lay there are take everything Ben has for him.

The redhead raises Marcus’ legs, bending them back towards his shoulders a little so he can hook his arms under them, effectively pinning him to the bed so he can pick up his pace. He begins snapping his hips, the sound of skin on skin filling the room. Ben leans over, pushing Marcus’ legs back further and deepening his thrusts. “Look at me Sweetheart.”

Marcus is panting softly, with his eyes scrunched shut. 

“Marcus, Sweetheart look at me…”

His blue eyes look up at Ben, his lip bitten and his face flushed. 

“Touch yourself for me again Sweetheart. I want you to feel so good you see stars.” He leans in and kisses Marcus deeply, groaning into his mouth when he feels Marcus reach down to jerk himself off. “That’s it…” He leans in to press their foreheads together gently. “I want to feel you cum on my cock, you feel so good Baby.”

Ben buries his face in the crook of Marcus’ neck, biting down gently, laving over the spot with his tongue softly. The sensation makes the brunette buck underneath him. “Ben!”

“Yes, Sweetheart?”

“So close!” Marcus is outright panting at this stage, stroking his cock frantically while Ben roughly rocks his hips, their skin slapping together obscenely. 

“Maybe…” Ben can barely concentrate right now, he’s so distracted by the delicious way Marcus is clenching around him. “Maybe you should do what you’re told for once!” He kisses him gently before looking him in the eyes. “Look at me… cum for me Sweetheart.”

Marcus’ hips rise to meet Ben’s thrusts, his grip on his cock tighter and more frantic as he nears his end. His instinct is to close his eyes, scrunch them up and hide at a moment this intense, but he knows Ben has a thing for his eyes so he tries his best to hold eye contact as he gets closer and closer. It feels intensely intimate. He can’t hide. The warmth has built inside him for so long, and he’s been touch starved for so long that his orgasm is so intense that he feels like he’s been sucker punched, but in the best way. Ben groans as he feels Marcus tighten around him, but also when he feels his stomach get coated with cum. It’s so gross, but hot, he thinks to himself. 

They kiss sloppily, Marcus grinning like an absolute idiot the whole time, arms draped over Ben’s shoulders so that he can trace gentle patterns with his nails. “Mmmm that feels so good!” Marcus swears he sees Ben blush even redder than his current flush. He runs his nails up and down Ben’s back experimentally, clawing at him with just enough pressure to make it not tickle. Ben arches into the touch, growling softly. His thrusts are becoming erratic and rough, even more so when Marcus claws along his rib cage, nibbling at his shoulder at the same time. “Fuck!” Ben groans loudly, pausing for a moment to sit up. “You mind if I uhh…?” 

“Ben Kissel lost for words? I’m yours to do what you wish with Benjamin…” He grins up at the redhead. Ben nods and smiles, picking up his punishing pace, holding Marcus’ legs up.

“I’m so close Sweetheart, you feel so fucking tight and amazing.” He pulls out and Marcus sighs at the loss, feeling very empty all of a sudden. He’s rewarded though, when Ben pulls the condom off, tossing it aside on the bed and starts stroking his cock in earnest. Marcus tries to commit this moment to memory forever, of Ben towering above him, ginger hair an absolute mess, soft body covered in it’s galaxy of freckles… with his thick cock in hand. His eyes are laser focused on Marcus, intensely looking over the sharp lines of his lithe body. He thumbs over the head of his cock, groaning as he throws his head back. He thinks back to how good Marcus felt clamped around his cock and it nudges him over the edge. He spurts thick ropes of cum over Marcus’ stomach and chest, groaning loudly as the waves of his orgasm pass over him. 

He sits on his heels for a moment to catch his breath before retrieving the wet wipes from Marcus’ desk draw to clean him up. It’s an oddly intimate moment as Ben wipes over the smaller man’s stomach and chest. He then flops down dramatically next to him, making the bed bounce, and Marcus giggle loudly. The brunette scoots closer so he can lay with his arm in the crook of Ben’s arm.He sighs contentedly and looks at Ben, who is looking up at the ceiling with a grin. “Next time can I Hail you Ben? I thought from Henry’s comments that that was the way this was going to go” He laughs gently. “Not that I didn’t enjoy this, far from it!”

“That was the intention Kid, but you’re so dang distracting that I couldn’t help but Hail you. I’d happily Hail you every damn day for the rest of my days, or at least until you get sick of me…”

“Not possible.”

“Good. Good.”

They lay in comfortable silence for a while, watching the way the light from the fairy lights twinkles on the ceiling. 

“So that was better than Hailing yourself in a convenience store bathroom huh?”

“Oh for sure, far less chance of Henry busting in!” Marcus cackles, not noticing the way that Ben watches his laughter like he is the centre of his entire universe. 

He laughs along, coming back to his senses again. He’s in deeper than he’d thought here. Much deeper. He laughs along with Marcus, smiling even though his brain is flailing around in an emotional panic. “Fucking Zebrowski.”


	15. Chapter 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> For @paintchipped on tumblr.   
I hope this is at least $6.66 worth of ok writing haha  
_______________________________________________________  
Barely managed to write this, so please don't expect proof reading or beta checking haha

It’s the early hours of the afternoon by the time Marcus wakes up, wrapped up in Ben’s arms. He’s slept solidly for a long while, leaving Ben alone with his thoughts. Thankfully he’d had the forethought to place his phone on Marcus’ bedside table before he’d been so deliciously distracted earlier. 

Ben: Henry. 

Ben: I can’t believe i’m saying this.

Ben: I need advice Henry.

He waits for a reply, sighing and placing his phone on the bed beside him when he doesn’t get an immediate response. Marcus stirs slightly, shuffling in his embrace before sinking back to sleep deeply again, sighing contentedly. It’s pretty adorable, Ben thinks to himself. He’s fully aware that he’s in the midst of a commitment phobia spiral. He’s not good at being with people. He hasn’t been in a proper relationship for a long, long time. 

Henry: Triple texting?!

Henry: What up Sasquatch?

Ben: I’m going to let that slide, only because I need your help.

Henry: Ahh yes, what can I, the oh wise and all knowing Henry Thomas Zebrowski do for a mere mortal like you, Benjamin Kissel?

Ben’s eye roll is almost audible. This is why he never talks seriously with Henry.

Ben: I have feelings for Marcus.

Henry: Congrats Big Boy!

Ben: Uhhh…thanks? I just… I don’t know how to process this? I have an overwhelming feeling of panic???

Henry: You’re thinkin’ about it, don’t think about it!

Ben: That does not help one bit.

Henry: You’re still thinkin’.

Henry: STOP THINKING ABOUT IT.

Ben groans and puts his phone down on Marcus’ bedside again. Looking down at the man snuggled up to him, snoring softly, Ben feels a swell of anxiety in his chest. Ben can hear Georgie scratching at the bedroom door and slowly peels himself away from Marcus, tip toeing out to the living room, scooping the small dog up on his way. He makes himself a coffee quietly, whispering a conversation with Georgie to amuse himself. He decides that Puffin would like Georgie, but would probably bully the tiny black dog considering how scrappy he is. Settling himself down on the couch, sitting cross legged, Ben scrolls through Marcus’ Netflix account, taking mental note of the kind of shows and movies that are on his list of things to watch. He settles on a straight to Netflix, predictably awful horror movie and snuggles up to the small dog.

***********************

A half hour or so later Marcus rolls over to find the bed empty beside him. A frown graces his face only briefly as he remembers that not everyone keeps the same fucked up sleep schedule he does. He softly pads barefoot to the entrance to the living area of his apartment, taking in the scene in front of him. Ben is cuddled up with Georgie, who is fast asleep in his lap. He has a definite frown on his face and is texting hurriedly. Marcus pauses for a moment and hears the constant pings and blips from Ben’s phone, indicating he’s in the middle of a rapid conversation. He coughs, if only to announce his presence to the taller man as not to startle him. 

“He has arisen!” Ben smiles, putting his phone down on the coffee table face down. 

“Sorry I passed out on you.” Marcus smiles sheepishly, reaching up to run his fingers through his hair sleepily. 

“Literally, kid. Georgie came to save me though. I like her, she’s kinda fun!”

“She’s the best girl. I uhh…I didn’t interrupt something did I? You were frowning pretty bad just then…”

“What? No. You’re fine. I was talking to a friend.”

Ben sees that his vague answer does nothing to remove the worried look from Marcus’ face. 

“Henry’s sister actually. You’d like her. She’s basically girl Henry, but better looking and exponentially funnier. Far less hairy too.”

“I don’t know why, but I can’t imagine Henry having a sister.”

“Oh she’s great! We go way back!” Ben smiles softly, putting Marcus at ease a bit. 

“Well as long as you’re ok, it looked serious.”

“Yeah, i’ve just got a lot going on in this giant noggin’, that’s all.” He gently places a sleeping Georgie on the stack of pillows next to him on the couch and gets up so put his arms around Marcus’ waist. “I’ve got to get to work soon kid, i’ve got an interview for a local news station in a few hours and I haven’t researched a fucking thing for it.”

“Oh?” Marcus smiles, quirking an eyebrow. “The mysterious Ben Kissel finally reveals what he does for a living. Kind of.”

“Oh it’s boring political shit, don’t bother. I’m a professional arguer!”

“I think that’s called debating Ben.”

“You know what they call people who are real good at debating Marcus?” He stifles a giggle, making Marcus laugh along with him. 

“Oh I know this one! You’re a master-debater Ben!”

“Wahey! You beat me to it. And don’t you forget- I have footage of you on my phone master debating!” Ben pokes his tongue out at Marcus, who snorts out a loud laugh. 

“Well maybe I should practice my debating if i’m doing to be dating such a skilled arguer…” Marcus wiggles his eyebrows. 

“Hey, hey. If anyones going to be debating you, it’s me kid. Hands off the goods!”

“This innuendo is getting so fucking confusing” Marcus chuckles. 

“Yeah… i’m lost too.” Ben grins, shrugging on his denim jacket and putting his keys and phone in his pocket. Marcus walks Ben to the door, leaning up to kiss him goodbye.

“You better text me Benjamin Kissel.”

“So bossy! Do you boss Georgie around like that? I don’t know how she takes it!”

“Oh, this is premium Marcus nagging, reserved just for you.”

“Well you’re a brat, Marcus Parks.”

“Don’t pretend you don’t love it.”

Ben’s heart hammers suddenly.

“Sure kid. I’ll see you around.”

Ben forces a smile before turning to start down the stairs, muttering “Fuck, fuck, fuck!” under his breath until he gets outside. “Fuck!”. 


	16. Chapter 16

Marcus hasn’t heard from Ben for the last two days, and while he knows that’s not a long time, there is still a pang of…something? Missing Ben? Jealousy? Who knows. But Marcus doesn’t like it. It makes him feel needy. He’s not used to this at all. On top of that, Holden has been a complete ass, throwing him into a stocktake straight after his days off. He’s not a key holder. “Heck!” he grumbles to himself, as he flips through a clip board, looking at the task ahead of him. He ain’t even a manager. This is usually Holden’s job, but apparently it’s Marcus’ problem for now. Settling in behind his counter, Marcus chews absentmindedly on red vines while flipping through a magazine, waiting for the store to be dead quiet before he starts counting.

It’s 12am when the door chime startles Marcus out of his tired haze.

“It’s eerie as shit in here!” Someone all but yells from the other end of the store. 

Why does this voice sound so familiar to him? A brunette woman rounds the isle in front of him, standing above Marcus as he counts boxes of stock that have been stowed under the shelves. 

“You know, you should really put some music on, Jack Skellington.”

Marcus grins, looking up at the woman. “Oh?”

“One might even call it… spooky???? In here???”

A snort escapes before Marcus can help himself, smiling at this woman. 

“I’m sorry, can I help you with something?”

“You got any hotdogs Marcus?”

“On the roller, near the counter. Half price fountain soda with the purchase of any dog by the way.”

“Now you’re talkin’!” 

Placing his clipboard down, Marcus makes his way to the counter, watching as the woman loads a hotdog with a mountain of toppings, balancing it with freakish precision. Her movements are almost…practiced? Marcus wonders to himself, transfixed by the woman as she places her carefully constructed dog on the counter. 

“Soda me up Scarecrow!”

“Do you always give strangers nicknames?” Marcus asks, pointing towards the soda fountain mounted on the wall. “Also! Is that a fucking hotdog tattooed on your arm?”

“No & Yes.”

She returns to the counter, the two at an awkward standstill. 

“Oh… you want me to elaborate!” She winks boldly, her gold and green eyeshadow glinting under the white fluorescent lighting. “It’s not rude to give nicknames to people you know. So you can stop with that fuckin’ sassy attitude, String Bean! And number two, were you checking me out?” Marcus quirks an eyebrow. “You’re not my usual type but my squirty bird hasn’t seen any action in a while so you can keep looking if you want.”

“Excuse me? Your WHAT?”

“Squirty Bird! My vageen. My puss.”

Marcus looks horrified for a brief moment before he manages to claw back his composure. 

“Well I’m going to have to add that to my vocabulary now. Not sure how often i’m going to be able to bust that one out, but it’s in there now.”

“Oh that’s right! You’re not a lover of the ‘Upright Wink’! The ‘Wizard Sleeve’. The ‘Cunnie’. The ‘Tuppence’.”

“Oh god, please. Stop. Why do I get the feeling you could keep going for an indeterminate amount of time about your ‘Heaven’s Gate’?”

“Whoa whoa whoa! I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable! Shit fuck! Sorry my dude!”

“Your assumption was incorrect anyway, Squirty Bird. I bat for both sides. All sides. I pitch for both teams? I don’t know- I fucking suck at sports analogies, but you get me.”

“He said you’re cute and funny when you’re flustered, I can see it now!”

“Cute?” Marcus barks out involuntarily. “Who said i’m cute?! AND! BIG AND! How do I know you? Or how do you know me?” He looks down and brushes his hand down his shirt, noticing he hasn’t put his name tag on tonight. 

The woman just stands there cackling, bending over to slap her knees as she wheezes with laughter.

“Come on Squirty Bird, fess up!”

“Ok- first up, Billy from Hocus Pocus… snitches get stitches. Secondly! A best friend never squeals on their giant counterpart. I’m one slightly too tight bear hug away from being accidentally killed each time we hug! I’m not gonna rat on him and risk bein’ squished to death!”

Again, Marcus’ brow quirks as he puts the puzzle pieces into place. 

“Have you caught up with Natalie and Henry recently? You know, being his sister and all…” He points dramatically, grinning. “Jackie Zebrowski!”

“Well fuck me! He finally gets it! Don’t you fucking dare tell Ben I was here though!”

“Why ARE you here?”

“Hotdogs?” Jackie tries, questioningly.

“Our hotdogs are shit, so I don’t buy that for one hot minute.”

Jackie sighs, blowing her bangs from her eyes. 

“You’ve got Ben all sorts of fucked up.”

“Oh?” He frowns.

“Oh yeah. He’s so fucking into you that he’s miserable!”

“How in the heck does that work?”

“He’s not good at relationships. Friends? Yeah. You try to get closer than that? You’re gone. The longest i’ve seen anyone stick around was this one guy a while ago that I got to meet twice.”

“How do I…? What…?”

Jackie cuts Marcus off abruptly. “This isn’t your battle kid. He’s got all sorts of shit going on up in that lofty noggin of his. Give him some space, don’t push him. Push him and I can see him reenacting 50 Shades of Grey on you. And not the sexy bits.”

“I don’t follow.”

“He pushes people away. He’ll Christian Grey you, scare you off by showing you the ‘Big Bad Wolf’ side of his sex life in the hopes of scaring you off. Typical, cliched Ben.”

“How am I making him so miserable? He seems…fine? Happy? When he’s with me.”

“Oh fuck, he is! Don’t think like that! He’s just not used to feeling all this fluff. He’s caught them feels Spooky Marcus, and he’s scared.”

“And what am I supposed to do? Just keep holding his fucking hand and hope he get’s over it?”

“Mmhmm. Hold that giant fucking hand real tight kid.”

Marcus sighs audibly, wanting to go home desperately so he can mentally rewind this whole interaction and anxiety spiral over every small detail obsessively. 

“Your dog is gettin’ cold…”

“I won’t let that get in the way of my impartial, fair judgement. Chin up kid, he knows you’re worth it, he’s just gotta pull his head outta his ass. It’s pretty far up there, so just give him time.”

Marcus nods, as Jackie approaches the door.

“Goodnight Squirty Bird.”

“Hakunamafuckit Marcus.” Jackie yells, leaving a very confused and anxious Marcus to worry at his red vines for another 5 long hours. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had a stupid amount of fun doing the dumb research needed to write this over the top version of Jackie.

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on tumblr as MrsMegadrive.
> 
> I have no posting schedule, so please feel free to comment or leave kudos to light a fire under my ass!


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